G5 Adventures in Treasure Buddies

The Mane 6, the Buddies, Violette Rainbow and their new friends (Cammy the camel, Faith the fennec fox pup and Tirako the lion cub) had been forced to settle down for the night under the cover of an electrical storm, a good ways away from the oasis that the others had stopped at for the night before they went to find the next clue to Cleopatra's tomb.

It was not going to be an easy night for Violette Rainbow and Mudbud, cause of how concerned they were for the safety of their loved ones.

But, little did anyone realize it, but it was also going to be a hard night for Sunny, because she was so sure she would find more answers to her alicornhood at the museum in Fernfield, but the Mane 6 ended up empty hoofed.

Now... she wasn't sure if she would find answers on this mission at all.

...or would she?

XXXXXXXX

For some reason, in Sunny's dreams, she was standing in the secret room that Misty had told her a lot about over the past several months, while butterflies flew around as she looked at the alicorn tapestry that hung on one part of the wall.

Misty had shown her a photo of the tapestry as soon as they started finding pieces of the map to Skyros, and in the back of Sunny's mind, she had a feeling that this tapestry might be important. “Mmm... who are they?”

“Something on your mind?” a mysterious voice asked, causing Sunny to nearly leap out of her skin before remembering that Misty often heard a voice when she was here that answered a lot of her questions about magic, instantly calming Sunny down again. “Well, actually, yes.” Sunny said with an uncertain smile as she looked around. “But a little afraid to ask. I'm a little bit worried about what I might find out... how that might affect my search for my mom.”

“Now is the perfect time to ask your question, Sunny,” the mysterious voice ensured the earth pony mare. “Well... I just can’t stop thinking about this tapestry.” Sunny said while looking at the tapestry. “Lately, I’ve been trying to understand more about what it means to be an alicorn. So... when we find Skyros, and my mom... I can be prepared for what I might find there.”

Suddenly, everything in the mysterious room took on a very ominous vibe, and the tapestry in front of Sunny instantly came to life, and the Good and Evil Alicorns from the fabric flew around the room. “Since the beginning, alicorns have been the rarest of creatures,” the voice explained. “Given incredible power, their potential is limited only to their imaginations.”

Sunny looked at the scene in awe before she saw some ponies in the field, surrounding the Good Alicorn in question. “Over the years, some have used their powers to spread goodness and hope, and to protect ponykind.”

Sunny continued to look awe struck before she frowned and slowly turned to see the Evil Alicorn giving a dastardly look. “And some become so obsessed with power, that they would do anything to have more.”

The Evil Alicorn quickly fired a magic blast at the good one, knocking her down as she was surrounded by fiery flames, right before the Good and Evil Alicorns started fighting, while Sunny looked in shock as the two sides clashed. “Being an alicorn is a great responsibility, Sunny,” the voice said gently, although a bit sternly as Sunny moved around to avoid the conflict of the two alicorns. “But the path you choose is always up to you.”

Sunny couldn’t take the fighting between the Good and Bad Alicorns anymore, so she ducked down and covered her eyes with her front hooves. “No! Stop! Stop it! No more!”

XXXXXXXX

Sunny immediately woke up from her dream with a terrified expression on her face, and Misty, who was already awake, looked on in worry, never seeing Sunny so worked up like this. “Sunny! Are you okay?”

Sunny panted as she looked up and saw Misty approaching her. “Misty! It was awful!” She cried out as she gave an anxious look. “Sometimes I wish I wasn’t an alicorn at all! I just... I can’t believe that Alicorns can be good or evil just like with Opaline! It made me wonder... do you think there's evil inside of me?”

“Ah, are you kidding me?” Misty asked with a smile. “You are the kindest pony I have ever met. Your friendship changed my life forever.”

“Really, Misty?” Sunny asked. “You think I’m good?”

“Of course I do.” Misty said as she dried Sunny's visible tears. “I know you. You could never be evil.”

Sunny gave a small chuckle and a heartfelt smile at the blue unicorn's words. “Thanks, Misty. Sometimes, I just feel so alone.”

“Trust me, I get it. But you’re never alone,” Misty continued gently. “You have us. And our friendship is stronger than anything.”

Sunny sighed in relief to this. “Yeah… I guess it really is.”

“Now, come on-- let’s get you back to bed,” Misty said before nudging Sunny back toward the others so they could get some shuteye. “We still have a long trip in the morning, and Mudbud and Violette both need us at their best.”

XXXXXXXX

Needless to say, Sunny slept rather soundly knowing that she had some good advice from Misty to pull her through... and the fact that she had her friends was a good factor as well.

In fact, Sunny couldn't remember waking up anymore throughout the long, cool desert night.

By the time the sun rose the next morning, Cammy was the first one to wake up, and turned to her friends with a smile on her face. “Wake up, everyone! It’s morning!”

Pipp yawned as she stretched her body out. “What a relief… the sand is soft, but it’s definitely gonna be hard to wash out of my mane when this is all over.”

“We don’t have time to worry about your mane right now, dudette,” Mudbud told Pipp with a frown. “We gotta rock and roll!”

“Mudbud’s right,” Violette nodded out of agreement. “Who knows how far ahead of us they are.”

And so, Cammy got back up onto her hooves, prompting the others to do the same with their own hooves and paws before they set off into the desert once more.

XXXXXXXX

Back at the oasis, the Bedouin tribe was just beginning to settle in after a long night of traveling, and as it turns out, everyone in Dr. Wellington's group was up and at them as well.

And seeing that they had some time on their hands, Pete had the perfect idea. “Grandpa, I’m gonna take Skye and we’re gonna go explore. Have you seen my compass?”

“No… no, I haven’t, Peter,” Thomas said out of thought before brushing the subject off for now. “Well, you go ahead. Mariama and I will join you in a minute.”

“Don’t worry, Pete. We still have my compass,” Skye said reassuringly as she lifted her compass up in her hoof. “Come on, let’s go see what’s over there.”

Skye and Pete then began to wander further into the oasis, finding a stone well right in the center, where the people of Egypt probably got some of their water from. However, they weren't expecting Farah to jump out and surprise them, catching them off-guard. “You got us!” Peter said, trying to catch his breath. “Hello, Farah.”

“Hello, Peter,” Farah smiled in greeting. “Hello, Skye.”

“When did you guys get here?” Skye asked in genuine surprise. “Late last night,” Farah explained. “Sometimes we travel at night when it is cooler.”

“Huh… that makes sense,” Skye said out of thought. “The desert did feel a lot cooler when we camped here.”

“Where are you going?” Peter asked curiously just as Farah’s father approached with Haruma. “Our tribe is making its way through the desert,” Haruma explained with a gentle smile. “It is our way, nothing more.”

“Oh, sorry,” Pete quickly apologized. “I didn’t mean to be nosy.”

Haruma smiled at this. “No no, you’re just curious children. And curious children are supposed to ask questions. I’m Haruma, by the way.”

“I’m Skye,” Skye introduced herself shyly. “And this is Pete.”

“Ah, yes. My daughter says you are here with your grandfather and who I assume is Skye’s mother,” Farah’s father said to Pete, causing him to nod. That was before Farah’s father glanced in the direction of Dr. Wellington. “This man you are traveling with… do your elders know him well?”

Pete shook his head to this. “They just met him a few days ago.”

“Well… you would do well not to trust him,” Haruma advised mysteriously. “Please… both of you, be safe. The desert can be a very unforgiving place.”

And with that, Farah’s father and Haruma walked away with Farah, but Pete was able to wave to her as they walked off. “See you later, Farah.”

“Bye,” Farah waved back just before Thomas and Mariama approached. “Oh, hi, kids!” Mariama smiled. “I see you've made a new friend.”

“Mom, Mr. Thomas!” Skye tried to warn her mother and Pete’s grandpa about what Farah’s father had said. “That man said not to trust…”

“All right, chaps, no time for chattering,” Dr. Wellington said as he approached with Ubasti in his arms, cutting Skye off and causing her to go silent. “Time to find the next clue.”

“Well… this well was built centuries ago. This was the widest part of the river,” Thomas said, walking away from the well in question. “And the Egyptians would have built an access to the river running down below.”

However, as he was walking away from the well, Thomas tripped over something in the sand and fell to the ground, much to Pete’s concern. “Are you okay, Grandpa?”

“Yes!” Thomas said, overjoyed as he and Mariama took out their brushes and began to brush the surface of whatever Thomas had just tripped on… and Mariama gasped as she saw the familiar symbol of a cat etched into the stone. “Jackpot!”

“What? What have you found?” Dr. Wellington asked as he approached. “It’s the Cat’s Eye symbol!” Mariama exclaimed. “This must be the entrance!”

“I’ll get the crowbars from the truck!” Skye offered, rushing back toward the truck. “That’ll help us get the stone off so we can get down there!”

XXXXXXXX

Babi had hid from sight as Skye rushed to the truck and grabbed the crowbars, not wanting himself to be given away just yet. But he had to admit, even a monkey like himself was curious about what they were going to do with those crowbars.

Once Skye had brought them the crowbars, Dr. Wellington had Tarik and Seti remove the stone slab from the entrance to the well, revealing a hidden staircase going further down. “Whoa…” Skye muttered, amazed. “Do you… think it’s safe, Mom?”

“There’s only one way to find out, sweetie,” Mariama said gently, rubbing her daughter’s head with her hoof. “Let’s go.”

Slowly, but surely, the group began to descend down the staircase, deeper beneath the oasis until they arrived at a truly amazing sight-- a pool of water right under the ground, and the light shining in from the top made the water truly shimmer and shine. “Look how much light is coming in here,” said Thomas, looking around intently. “The sun must be directly over the opening of the well.”

With that, Thomas put the Bronze of Bastet together and began to wade into the water until he reached the center of the well, placing the Bronze of Bastet in the slot and turning it slightly. Then, the light from the sun above reflected off the disc and lighting up some markings carved into the walls.

And seeing that he wouldn’t be able to go over and get both markings, he decided to divide up the tasks. “Oh. Peter. You and Skye go clean off that part of the wall over there. And, Seti, you and Mariama clean that other spot.”

The zebras nodded and then helped Pete and Seti into the well, making sure they didn’t lose their balance. “Hurry along, hurry along,” Dr. Wellington urged. And once they were in the right place, Skye and Mariama helped clean the spots on the wall until they could be seen better. “Well?” Skye seemed confused by what her and Pete’s symbol (which consisted of a U and an exclamation mark). “What does it mean?”

Thomas first looked toward the marking that Seti had cleaned off, with that symbol being a strange, curved shape. “That one stands for royalty in this part of Egypt,” he said before looking at the symbol Pete and Skye had cleaned off. “And the other is called a menet. It's the source of great power for the gods. Tarik, the map!”

Tarik immediately got the map out of the bag and handed it over to Thomas, who skimmed it over after getting out of the well. And then, after looking at the map for a few moments, Thomas' eyes lit up with recognition and extreme happiness. “I think we have it. I know where Cleocatra's tomb lies.”

XXXXXXXX

Back in the desert, the Buddies, the Mane 6, Violette and their desert animal friends continued making their way across the blazing hot sands of Egypt to find the oasis. But the further they went, the more tired they seemed to get.

After a while, Izzy panted tiredly, her ears drooping and her lavender body coated with sweat. “So… hot! Can’t… go… on!!!”

“I hate to admit it, but I’m not sure how much farther I can go either,” Rosebud admitted. “We need water!”

“We can’t stop, guys,” Sunny said, carrying Violette on her back. “Our friends are counting on us, and we’re not gonna let them down.”

And realizing that Sunny had a valid point, the group decided to keep going, no matter what desert obstacles laid in their path.

XXXXXXXX

Meanwhile, back in the oasis, Babi could see that the group of travelers were getting ready to leave the oasis soon, since they knew where Cleocatra's tomb rested, and he knew that the ponies and his other friends needed time to get there.

Fortunately, he came up with a plan that he was sure would work.

Taking the dagger out from his holder, Babi then began to work his way around the jeep, poking holes in some of the tires to let out the air. After all, they couldn't go anywhere if they had flat tires.

However, one thing that Babi had not anticipated was Dr. Wellington and Ubasti coming back toward the jeep, and the archeologist (or so it seemed) was stroking the cat rather lovingly... much to Ubasti's disliking. “Yes, Ubasti, we're getting very, very close.”

However, Ubasti had her narrowed gaze set on Babi, who was just finishing up poking the third of the four tires with his dagger. “What's that petty primate doing here? Up to no good.”

With that, Ubasti meowed and leapt down from her owner’s arms, much to Dr. Wellington’s concern. “No, no, no, no!”

And as Babi was about to poke a hole into the last tire, Ubasti came up from behind, causing him to scream in surprise. “Scary cat!”

“What do you think you're doing?” Ubasti asked the monkey, who chuckled and hid his dagger behind his back. “Nothing,” Babi lied, but Ubasti could see right through him, her gaze narrowing further. “I've traveled far to find Cleocatra's tomb,” she declared, “and no one is going to stop me!”

And with that, Ubasti hissed at Babi, causing him to screech in fright and run into the oasis to hide. “Ubasti… kitty,” Dr. Wellington cooed as he approached, picking the cat up into his arms. “There you are, my little darling.”

For once, Ubasti wasn't all that focused on her master's overbearing cuddles. She had to make sure that they succeeded in finding Cleocatra's tomb...

...no matter what the time seemed to take.

And soon, it was time to move on, and the Bedouin tribe seemed to be getting ready to head out as well. With that being said, Pete and Skye were able to wave to Farah one last time before they got into the jeep and set off into the desert once again... not having any idea of what was really going on.

XXXXXXXX

Back in the desert sands, Faith, Cammy and Tirako could sense that the oasis wasn't very far away, but with all the sand around them, it was hard to figure out where exactly the oasis was.

Soon, Izzy stopped in her tracks, and Budderball did too, when they saw what looked like a picnic blanket with many different types of food spread out not too far away. “Hey…” Budderball spoke up after a moment of staring. “What’s that?”

“I don’t know…” Izzy shook her head. “But I’m getting hungry just looking at it!”

However, when the others looked around, they didn’t see anything of the sort. “Izzy, Budderball?” Violette seemed confused. “What is it?”

“Can’t you see it, Violette?!” Izzy asked in excitement. “It’s food!”

“Hot dogs! Pizza! And lemonade! They've even got ice cream! Oh, sweet mama!” Budderball said in excitement. “Come on, Izzy! Let’s dig in!”

“Ha ha, yes!” Izzy pumped a hoof out of excitement. “No need to ask me twice, big fella!”

And with that, Izzy and Budderball raced over to the picnic spread and began to laugh and roll around all over it... even though all the others could see was their friends rolling over and over in sand. “Uh, dudes?” Mudbud finally whispered. “I know Izzy can be a little erratic sometimes, but I think Budderball has lost his marbles.”

“Oh, Izzy and Budderball are probably just seeing a mirage,” Tirako explained. “The heat makes your brain do funny things sometimes.”

“Oh, you should have seen Shaggy and Scooby’s mirage when we had our Unity Quest with them in Egypt a month or two back,” Hitch said with a slight chuckle. “They actually drank sand thinking it was water from an oasis.”

“Come on, guys!” Budderball called to his friends and siblings. “Dig in!”

“Izzy! Budderball!” Misty cried. “You’ve gotta snap out of it!”

However, Izzy and Budderball realized it too late when they accidentally got a large mouthful of sand instead of ice cream, much to B-Dawg’s disgust and… honestly, slight amusement. “Now that's what I call a sand-wich.”

“Where’d the buffet go?!” Izzy asked in surprise, looking around to see if she could find the picnic spread again.

“I’m sure we’ll find you guys something to eat a little later,” Sunny said, helping Izzy onto her hooves. “For now, we still have a long way to go to the oasis.”

However, Mudbud caught sight of something that looked a bit out of place in the hot steaming desert. “Look! What's that?” he asked, looking into the distance. “I see it too!” Zipp nodded. “It looks like trees!”

“Trees?” B-Dawg asked skeptically. “You've gotta be hallucin-a-trippin', dawg.”

However, when Mudbud shook his head, the trees were still visible. “I can still see them, it's real!”

“And where there’s trees,” Faith realized, “there must be water!”

“It’s the oasis!” Cammy then realized. “Oh-ho, yes!” Pipp cheered in excitement. “We are so totally saved!”

“Come on, guys!” Violette said rather excitedly. “The sooner we get to the oasis, the sooner we find our friends and stop Ubasti!”

“Right behind you, Violette!” Rosebud called, and the group immediately headed in the direction of the trees, knowing they were that much closer to catching up to their friends…

...or... so they thought.

XXXXXXXX

“Gone?!” Misty looked around. “They’re gone?!”

“They must’ve left right before we got here!” Zipp groaned in frustration. “The second we think we’re on their tail, we lose them again!”

“We’ll find them again,” Tirako said gently, rubbing up against Zipp’s side to comfort her. “But right now, we need to see if we can find water. I’m really thirsty.”

That was when B-Dawg spotted the open entrance to the well that Mariama, Skye and their group had accidentally left open. “Yo, dawgs, check it out.”

“Huh… well, at least we know they WERE here somehow,” Sunny said as she inspected the hole just before she started giving out orders. “Cammy, you stay up here and keep watch. The rest of you, follow me. We’re heading down below.”

Cammy nodded to this, and soon, the Mane 6 were leading Violette, the Buddies, Tirako and Faith down the spiral staircase down into the darkness waiting for them...

...along with the pool of water at the bottom of the well, which immediately caused the group's eyes to widen in awe. And surprisingly, Mudbud was okay with taking a bath... at least, this once. “I've never been so happy to take a bath in my whole life!”

“Come on, guys!” Violette cried out. “Let’s dive in!”

“Surf’s up, dudes!”

“Yippee!!”

“Whoo-hoo!”

“All right!”

“Move it or lose it, coming through!”

And once a lot of them had gotten into the water, they promised themselves that they weren't gonna regret the amazing gift of water again.

However, while his siblings and friends took their swim, B-Dawg decided to take his leave. “There's no way I'm going in there without my floaties, dawgs.”

“Suit yourself, B-Dawg!” Sunny said to the pup with a slight laugh as Izzy splashed her. “You can wait back up there with Cammy while we take a swim and grab some water to take on the rest of the trip!”

XXXXXXXX

Back in the desert, the air in three of the jeep’s tires finally gave out, causing the group of desert adventurers to stop temporarily.

And needless to say, Dr. Wellington was not pleased. “What now?!”

“Mr. Wellington, I think we have a flat tire,” Seti said bashfully, causing his employer to grumble in annoyance. “This is outrageous! How did this happen?”

However, Seti and Tarik had no idea how to respond, only making Mr. Wellington that much angrier. “This is... This is all your fault, nitwits!” he said, kicking sand at the duo. “Idiots!”

“Sheesh…” Skye muttered out of worry, looking up at her mother. “I think he has some serious anger issues to work out.”

“Well, I guess we're going to be stuck here for the night,” Thomas told the others. “So we may as well make ourselves useful, Pete, and unload the truck.”

“Good idea,” Mariama smiled as they prepared to unload the truck. “Only one more night, and we’ll be at Cleocatra’s tomb in no time.”

XXXXXXXX

It took a little bit longer for the others to finish their swim in the well, and once they were back up on the surface and all dried off, Cammy looked around with a concerned look on her muzzle. “It’s like you said, Misty-- my tribe and your tribe are not here.”

“They must’ve moved on already,” Pipp frowned. “No need to worry,” Faith reassured. “We just need to figure out which way they went and try to catch up.”

Suddenly, B-Dawg felt something hit him over the head, causing him to yelp in pain. “What was that?!”

“Relax, B-Dawg. It was probably just the wind,” Buddha reassured before another object hit B-Dawg on the head again. “Ow!” B-Dawg yelped again. “Then that wind has sick paw-eye coordination.”

“Ow!” Izzy yelped as soon as she felt something hit her on the head too. “I think we’re under attack by something!”

“Yeah,” Hitch nodded slowly, “but by what?”

Rosebud grunted as she was hit by an object similar to what the others felt, and looked down to see a brown, pellet-like object on the sand in front of her. “Hey, they're falling from that tree up there.”

“Those are dates, Rosebud,” Tirako explained. “A delicacy here in Egypt. But, it's weird… dates don’t usually fall down on their own like that.”

Suddenly, dates began to fall down on them at a rapid pace, causing them to yelp and groan in pain as the dates made impact-- not even Izzy and Misty's unicorn shields could keep the dates from hitting them. But then, the group looked up to see someone they knew shaking the tree and causing the dates to fall, much to their annoyance. “Babi?!”

Babi merely stuck out his tongue at them and laughed before jumping onto Cammy’s back. “Babi!” Cammy said with a smile. “We’re so glad we found you!”

“Buddies and my other friends!” Babi greeted with a smile. “I am so glad you have made it.”

“Babi, what happened to the zebras, Pete and Grandpa Thomas?” Mudbud asked in concern. “Yeah!” Faith huffed. “They should be here, but they’re totally not!”

“Babi was following boy and zebras and men and cat. Cat very scary,” Babi explained with a touch of fear. “She find Babi, so Babi run and hide in oasis.”

“Are they okay?” Violette asked in concern. “Very much so, friend Violette,” Babi confirmed with a gentle smile. “They are on their way to Cleocatra's tomb.”

“That’s great, dawg,” B-Dawg told him before frowning again. “Too bad we have no idea where it is.”

“Babi has idea,” the monkey quickly told the others. “Babi see Bedouin tribe following, they can help.”

“Cammy, our moms!” Tirako exclaimed in happiness. “We’re so close to getting back with them!”

“Come on, guys!” Cammy exclaimed. “We’ll go to the camp!”

“What about the others? We can't let them get to the tomb before us,” Pipp frowned, “and I can’t call them without any signal!”

That was when Babi got out his dagger to show it off to his friends. “Babi has dealt with that.”

“And if we hurry,” Zipp said with a determined smile on her face, “we can reach the Bedouin tribe before nightfall!”

XXXXXXXX

However, as they were following the camel tracks of the Bedoiun tribe to try and catch up, B-Dawg looked up at Babi, who was still riding on Cammy's back with Tirako and Faith. “So, Babi, dawg, how 'bout you give me back my bling?”

“Deal is deal, friend,” Babi told B-Dawg, trying not to smirk. “All trades are final.”

“We can’t wait for you to meet our tribe, guys,” Cammy said, looking back at all her and Tirako's new friends. “They will be very grateful for all you have done.”

“Hey... do you think that's them?” Misty asked, pointing her hoof toward a group just up ahead. “There seem to be a lot of camels, and I think I see an adult, female lion!”

Tirako glanced ahead at what Misty was pointing at and gasped, his golden eyes lighting up in recognition. “That’s it! Many thanks to you, Buddies-- and your pony friends too.”

“And you and Faith too, Babi!” Cammy agreed. “We’re home!”

Faith, Tirako and Babi hopped right off Cammy’s back, and slowly began to approach the tribe, all of them secretly hoping Cammy and Tirako's mothers would see them from a distance.

XXXXXXXX

Haruma and Cammy’s mother Mala had been so worried about their kids ever since Cammy had been taken and ever since Tirako snuck away from the tribe to find her.

It made them wonder... would they ever see their little ones again?

Suddenly, their ears perked up at the sound of someone approaching, and soon, Mala and Haruma saw their little ones approaching with their friends, both of them safe and sound.

“Cammy!”

“Tirako!”

“Mom!” Cammy and Tirako both exclaimed in joy, prompting Haruma and Mala to begin approaching. “Oh...!” Haruma couldn’t help but sigh in relief. “I can’t believe it's you!”

Even Farah, who recognized Tirako and Cammy from her tribe, gasped at the sight of them. “Tirako! Cammy!”

Tirako and Haruma laughed in happiness as they rubbed up against each other and reunited after such a long while of being apart, and Cammy’s mother laid a big, slobbery camel kiss on her young daughter...

...much to the Mane 6's happiness. “Aww…” Violette cooed. “I gotta admit it, all the hiking through the desert sands really put this moment into perspective.”

“You took the words right out of my mouth, Violette,” Zipp said with a smile. “And what matters is that Tirako and Cammy are back with their families.”

“Tirako… my sweet, sweet baby,” Haruma purred to her son with a relieved expression on her face. “I was so worried when you snuck away. I never want you to go off on your own like that again.”

Tirako’s ears lowered to this. “I’m sorry, Mom… I just wanted to go and find Cammy, and bring her home where she belonged.”

Haruma sighed at this, deciding to not punish her son for once and kept on purring against him. “My dear Cammy,” Mala expressed her relief through words. “I thought I would never see you again.”

“The bad man tried to sell me,” Cammy explained, “but Tirako and all of our new friends helped us to escape.”

Mala and Haruma turned back to the Mane 6, the Buddies, Violette, Babi and Faith, both of them expressing deep relief and gratitude. “We can never thank you enough for bringing our babies back to us,” Haruma sighed with a sincere smile. “How could we ever repay you?”

“We could do lunch sometime,” Budderball said with a shrug. “Soon, preferably.”

“We welcomed the opportunity to create good karma,” Buddha said before closing his eyes. “Namaste.”

“It was our pleasure,” Sunny told the mothers with a sincere smile. “Cammy and Tirako helped us out in more ways than one.”

“Yo,” B-Dawg greeted with his signature slang. “B-Dawg's the name, and these dawgs are my tribe.”

“My name is Mala,” the mother camel introduced herself, “and this is Haruma, and our tribe would be thrilled to have you as our honored guests.”

“Honored guests, huh?” Hitch looked over at Zipp with a smile. “We humbly accept!”

“Well, what’re we waiting for, ponies?” Violette asked with a smile. “We’ve got a party to go to!”

XXXXXXXX

The party that night was in full swing-- dancers, music, games, food… the whole nine yards.

And the Mane 6, Violette and all their friends felt as if they were on top of the world… at least, temporarily.

B-Dawg, Buddha, Izzy and Zipp sat in front of some musicians while Pipp was trying to copy and imitate some Egyptian dancers, and B-Dawg had to admit, the beat and rhythm of this music amazed him. “Yo, these dawgs got it going on.”

“And Pipp’s got the dance moves going on!” Izzy cheered as Pipp soon got into the rhythm of the music and started dancing just like the dancers. “WHOO!!! Go, Pipp! Go, Pipp!”

XXXXXXXX

At the same time, Rosebud, Sunny and Violette were all sitting together when Rosebud noticed that a few of the Bedouin tribe members were playing something that looked like an ancient board game, causing her to hum in thought. “That looks like an interesting game.”

“Let’s see how you play,” Violette suggested. “That way, maybe we can tell the others about it if we get bored on the search.”

XXXXXXXX

In another part of the camp, food was being passed around, including to Hitch, Misty, Budderball and Mudbud, with Tirako, Cammy, Faith and Babi sitting across from them. “Here you go, gang,” Faith smiled. “Dinner is served!”

“My three favorite words!” Budderball hungrily licked his chops. “Pinch me, I wanna make sure this isn't a mirage.”

However, when Budderball looked down at the food offered to him, he retaliated just a bit. “Cammy? No offense, but my dinner looks an awful lot like bugs.”

“Uh… it doesn’t just LOOK like bugs,” Hitch said after inspecting the food. “Your dinner is bugs.”

“They’re actually called scarab beetles,” Haruma explained as she walked over and sat next to them. “They are a true delicacy of the Bedouins.”

“Do you have anything less delicate, like pizza or maybe some hamburgers?” Budderball asked, not sure how to feel about eating actual bugs, and Mudbud just stared at his older brother in shock. “Whoa! Budderball turning down food? That just blew my mind.”

“They are quite good, Budderball,” Cammy said sincerely. “I promise.”

“Besides,” said Misty, “you might like them if you just give them a chance.”

Budderball seemed to consider this for a few moments, eventually weighing his options until he decided to trust Cammy and Misty's word. “Okay,” he sighed to himself before gulping nervously. “Here goes nothing. Over the teeth, past the gums, look out stomach, here the bugs come.”

And so, Budderball picked up one of the beetles in his mouth and began to steadily chew it, while the others awaited a reaction, either of delight or disgust. When Budderball finally swallowed it, Babi turned to him, looking hopeful. “Budderball like scarabs?”

“Crunchy, but not bad,” Budderball said with an honest shrug. “Tastes like chicken.”

Babi chattered and clapped his hands excitedly to this, and even Hitch and Misty let out a laugh. This was definitely a way to unwind, even for a little while, before they had to get back on their friends' trail.

XXXXXXXX

Skye and Pete couldn't sleep-- they were too excited about finally finding Cleocatra's tomb. So, while Mariama and Thomas slept, they wandered outside to look at the stars, but ended up walking closer to Dr. Wellington's tent.

Inside that tent, Seti and Tarik were tending to Dr. Wellington, who was enjoying a very relaxing massage. “That archeologist and his zebra pet are getting far too nosy. Typical American. Can't mind their Ps and Qs.”

“Huh?” Skye muttered, prompting her and Pete to get closer so they could listen in. “But tomorrow,” Dr. Wellington continued, unaware of the kids’ presence, “we’ll be rid of them and their annoying children, and the treasure will be mine-- er, ours.”

Skye and Pete looked at each other in shock-- Dr. Wellington was a traitor to all of them!

But what could they do?

They were just kids, after all.

Pete, while trying to get back to the tent, stumbled over some supplies behind him, causing a loud crash to go off that alerted Dr. Wellington and his henchmen that someone else was there. “Oh no no no no!” Skye whispered in terror. “Come on, Pete! We have to tell Mom and Mr. Thomas!”

And with that, the two kids raced inside the other tent and over to their guardians, shaking them out of desperation. “Mariama! Grandpa, wake up!” Pete said worriedly, causing Thomas and Mariama to stir. And once they did, Pete explained what had just happened. “Skye and I heard Mr. Wellington say he's gonna get rid of us and keep the treasure for himself!”

“What?” Thomas questioned, now fully awake. “Peter… really?”

Pete and Skye both nodded to this, causing Mariama to gasp in fear, realizing what they were doing. “Oh, no…”

However, Thomas muttered to himself in guilt, not believing he had wandered right into the traitor’s trap. “I should've known he was just a grave robber.”

“What are we gonna do?” Skye asked, obviously very frightened. “Well, first off,” Mariama said gently, but also sternly, “we need to be very careful. Philip could be dangerous.”

However, the second Mariama said this, Dr. Wellington had Tarik and Seti grab Pete and Skye, holding them in a tight grip and causing Skye to scream while Dr. Wellington smirked. “Could he now?”

“We’re done helping you, Philip!” Thomas declared in anger while Mariama looked terrified for the sake of her daughter and her friend. “Oh, I think not, Professor Howard,” Dr. Wellington said with a slight sneer to his tone. “For the sake of your precious grandson and your closest colleague’s daughter, you'll do exactly what I want you to do.”

Mariama and Thomas both knew that he was using manipulation against them, trying to get them to comply in order to save Pete and Skye.

And unfortunately... it worked.

They knew they would have no choice with the kids' lives on the line.

Pete and Skye had never been so scared in their entire lives... and they knew that if they led Dr. Wellington to Cleocatra's tomb...

...it would end badly for all of them.

Now, Skye wished that Violette and the older ponies were here-- they would be able to get them out of this situation.

Little did they know, they would be reuniting with the heroes of Equestria within the next day's time.