The Treasure of Easter Island (Geronimo Stilton #60) Page 3
the ancient traditions of
Polynesia, which is where
my courageous forefathers
came from when they
explored this new land.”
It all sounded very, very
familiar. But where had I
heard it before?
Vaitea’s words kept
turning over and over in
my head. Then suddenly
it was like a light bulb
Moai by
the sea . . .
Polynesia . . .
Sacred
ceremonies . . .
Forefathers
explored . . .
Ancient
traditions . . .
went off. I had read those words before in
my travel guide! I leafed through it until I
found what I was looking for.
“Listen to this!” I told the others, reading
from the book. “‘Most of the moai on Easter
Island look inward with their backs to the
sea. But there is one group of seven
moai that look toward the sea.’” I turned
toward Vaitea eagerly. “Do you know
where these seven moai are?”
“Of course,” she replied
immediately. “They are
at AHU AKIVI. I can
take you there right
now if you wish.
They represent the
seven young explorers
who left Polynesia to
look for new land, and
Listen to
this!
finally reached Easter Island.”
Susie, Trap, Wild Willie, and I exchanged
a look. We had solved the next CLUE!
Vaitea turned the SUV onto a long dirt
road full of potholes. Then we came to a
STOP in a clearing. We quickly climbed
out, eager with excitement. The four of
us ran toward the summit of the small hill.
At the top of the hill was a platform
with seven moai standing in a row. The
full moon bathed them with a silvery
light, surrounding them with a halo of
mystery.
“These must be the Seven Young
Explorers!” I whispered to Susie.
What a sight!
Here’s Ahu Akivi!
AHU AKIVI
Ahu Akivi is found inland instead
of along the coast like the other
ahu on Easter Island. It is also the
only site where the moai look out
toward the ocean.
Vaitea noticed me and Susie whispering, and
she studied us closely with her BRIGHT
eyes.
“Excuse me, I don’t mean to be rude, but
I don’t think you’ve told me the truth
about why you are here,” she began. “I have
a feeling you’re not simply TOURISTS.”
I looked at my friends. I was more than
happy to tell Vaitea the truth, but I wasn’t
sure what they were thinking.
Susie smiled. “It’s okay with me if we tell
her,” she said. “I trust Vaitea.”
Wild Willie nodded. “Me, too.”
“Hmpf!” Trap squeaked. “Well, I don’t
want to tell her. I don’t want to share the
the sIgh of the
WInd
treasure with anyone!”
Susie gave Trap a
STERN
look.
“Aren’t you ashamed of being so
greedy?” she asked. “We’re searching
for Thea, not the treasure!”
“You might be searching for Thea, but
I’m looking for the treasure,” Trap admitted
with a shrug. He didn’t seem ashamed at
all!
Grrr . . .
Please, let me
explain . . .
Hmm . . .
The two of them began squabbling.
Wild Willie had to pull them apart!
“Three to one,” Willie told Trap. “The
majority wins. Geronimo, explain
everything to Vaitea!”
“My sister, Thea, came here in search of a
treasure
, but she’s gone missing!” I told
Vaitea. “She never returned home to New
Mouse City. So now we’re looking for the
same treasure
in the hope of finding her!”
Vaitea thought it over.
“I’ll help!” she offered.
Three warrior steps
to the left . . .
Seven gigantic steps
to the right . . .
Meanwhile, Trap was busy following the
directions on the map. He had run in
front of the seven moai and began counting
in a LOUD voice.
“Okay,” he squeaked. “The map says to
take seven gigantic steps to the right, three
warrior steps to the left, and one baby
step forward . . .”
He had just taken the baby step when his
paw landed on something that looked like
a plain old rock. But it wasn’t a rock. It was
a hole!
One baby step
forward . . .
Help!
With a yelp, Trap fell into it — down,
down, down!
We ran toward the hole, but it was too
late. My cousin had disappeared!
Wild Willie TWIRLED his whiskers
thoughtfully.
“The riddle did say, ‘The Sigh of the
Wind will take you far away,’” he said.
“We’ve got to do something!” Susie
squeaked.
“Are you ready for an ADVENTURE?”
Wild Willie shouted. “If you are, follow me!”
He held out his
paw
to Susie, who
held out her paw to me. In turn, I held out
my paw to Vaitea. A moment later, Wild
Willie jumped into the hole, taking the
rest of us with him!
MOLDY MOZZARELLA!
How do I get
myself into these messes?!
I’m so scared!
Let’s go!
Are you
ready for an
adventure?
We found ourselves inside a damp, dark
underground tunnel. I was terrified! I
couldn’t see a whisker!
What’s more, there was a continuous
rustling noise, as if a GIGANTIC creature
was lying there, breathing in the dark. I
let out a shriek of terror as we plummeted
the bIg blAck
bubble
Argh!
Where are we
going?
deeper and deeper into the underground
passageway. We seemed to be traveling to the
center of the Earth. A moment later, I
was no longer sliding down the tunnel — I
was
floating
in the air! The Sigh of the
Wind was carrying us along!
We floated along in the tunnel for a
long time. Then instead of descending
farther, we began to rise
until the wind
finally deposited us on FIRM ground. Trap
had already emerged and was rubbing his
Help!
Ahhh!
Ouch!
Whoops!
Your hat!
We’re all
here!
BRUiSED tail. Wild Willie bounded out,
but his hat remained floating in midair as
if on top of an
invisible fountain. Willie
grabbed it quickly and put it back on his
head.
I glanced around me and made sure
everyone was okay.
“Trap, Susie, Wild Willie, Vaitea, and
me!” I squeaked. “All here!”
I breathed a sigh of relief. Then I looked
around, taking in my surroundings.
We found ourselves inside an enormouse
cave with a rounded ceiling. It looked
like a big, DARK bubble. There was a
saltwater lagoon in the middle of the cave. I
gently touched the wall: It was dark, porous
volcanic rock.
“The Big Black Bubble !”
whispered Susie. “We found it!”
This must be
the Big Black
Bubble!
Yay! This is
where the
treasure is!
This is
volcanic
rock!
“This is where the treasure is!” Trap
squeaked with excitement.
Susie turned to him, an angry look on
her snout.
“No, this is where we might find Thea!”
she corrected him. “How can you only think
of the treasure? You should be ashamed
of yourself!”
Meanwhile, Wild Willie examined the
map.
“I checked our direction with the
compass while we were traveling on
the Sigh of the Wind,” he whispered. “We
traveled underground in a SOUTHWEST
direction.”
“That means we’re now right under the
Rano Kau CRATER!” Vaitea added.
“We’re in the heart of a volcano. And this
must be a secret underground lagoon.
I’ve never seen it on any map, and I’ve been
a guide on this island since I was a tiny
mouselet!”
PACIFIC OCEAN
CHILEAN SEA
Pukatikei
Volcano
Poike
Ahu Tongariki
Hotu-iti
Oroi
Vaihu
Ahu Vinapu
Orongo
Mataveri
International
Airport
Hanga Roa
Ahu Akivi
Rano Kau
Volcano
Terevaka
Volcano
We traveled underground
from ahu akivi to the rano
kau crater !
As they were talking, Susie snapped some
photos of Wild Willie checking the map. The
camera’s flash lit the rocks behind us.
At the same time, Trap sneezed. The
sound bounced off the surrounding walls,
ECHOING loudly.
pIrAtes In the nIght
Click!
Achoo!
A second later we heard a squeak. We
weren’t alone in the cave! And the flash of
the camera and the echo of the sneeze had
revealed our presence to whoever else was
there.
Wild Willie motioned to us to keep quiet.
Then he scampered behind some
rocks and squatted down. We immediately
followed his example. A moment later, we
heard an unfriendly voice.
“Search there, at the end of the cave,” the
voice commanded. “And if you find anyone,
bring them to me!”
“Maybe somebody came looking for
that nosy little mouse and the professor,”
another voice replied.
I shivered. Was
“that nosy mouse” my
sister, Thea? But who
was the professor?
“Let’s get back to the SHIP!”
the first voice yelled. “We have to
finish loading the treasure. We’ll leave
tonight!”
I’m
scared!
Uh-oh!
“Yes, Captain,” the other
rodent replied. “But what are
we going do with our prisoners? They
know EVERYTHING. We can’t leave
them here!”
My whiskers trembled with fear.
“I’ll figure it out later,” grumbled the
captain. “Now let’s go! Get the PRISONERS
Yes, Captain!
Let’s get back
to the ship!
and bring them to the ship. They may still
be useful!”
Someone was coming toward us, but Wild
Willie signaled to us to follow him quietly.
Afraid of being seen, we slithered across
the cave floor on our elbows until we
reached the shore of the lagoon, where we
saw a giant PIRATE SHIP!
The ship had a
slim
shape and a huge
sail to better cruise the waves. It was
completely black — including the sails —
and I could see its name on the side:
PHANTOM OF THE NIGHT.
Susie pointed to something hanging from
the tip of a rock, high above us. It was a
giant cage! Inside was my sister, Thea,
and Professor Von Dustyfur, a famouse
ARCHAEOLOGIST who specializes
in ancient treasures.
The short, round
pirate moved toward the
cage. I was about to RUN
over to save my sister and
the professor when Wild
Willie grabbed me by the tail.
“Wait!” he whispered. “Just be
quiet. Let’s see what happens.”
The pirate lowered the
CAGE using a pulley.
Then he opened it,
nudged my sister and
the professor out of the
cage, and tied their
paws behind their
backs. He left them
behind a giant pile
of CRATES.
“Don’t move, got
Prisoners,
come to me!
Argh!
it?” he hissed. “The captain hasn’t decided
what to do with you yet!”
The other PIRATES loaded the crates
onto the ship one at a time, arranging them
neatly in the cargo compartment. As the
pirates worked, the captain barked insults
at his crew.
“Hurry up or I’ll feed you to the SHARKS
What will they
do with us?
We’re in
trouble!
for dinner!” he squeaked menacingly.
Soon all the pirates had disappeared inside
the ship, leaving Thea and the professor
alone. I signaled to the others, and we
crept quickly but quietly to their side.
“Shhh! Thea, it’s me, Geronimo!” I
whispered. “We came to save you!”
Ugh!
Move it!
Hurry
up!
Thea’s eyes LIT UP when she saw me.
Luckily, she and the professor remained
silent. I picked up a SHARP sliver
of rock and used it to saw through the ropes
that bound their paws.
“Follow me,” I whispered to them. “But
don’t make a sound!”
The pirates were busy preparing for their
the treAsure of
rApA nuI
Thank you!
Hooray!
I’ll free you!
departure, so they didn’t see us sneak
away from the shi
p. We slipped behind some
rocks out of the pirates’ view.
“Thank you, Geronimo!” Thea said,
hugging me affectionately. “I knew
you’d come save me!”
Professor Von Dustyfur also thanked me
warmly. I introduced Susie, Trap, Wild
Willie, and Vaitea.
“I would never have been able to find you
without their help,” I told Thea and the
professor.
“What are these PIRATES up to?” Willie
asked, pointing to the ship.
“Well, I came to the island and followed
the instructions on the map, just like you,”
Thea explained. “First I found the largest
AHU with the fifteen moai, then the Great
Water, then the Seven Young Explorers, and
THEA’S ADVENTURE
1
2
3
4
Thea arrived on Easter Island
and searched for the precious
treasure by following the
directions on the map.
She entered the Tunnel of
the Sigh of the Wind . . .
... and she was captured
by pirates! That’s when she
met the professor, who had
been their prisoner for many
months.
She came to the Big
Black Bubble . . .
finally the Big Black Bubble.”
The rest of us leaned in, eager to hear
what happened next.
“Here, under the Big Black Bubble, I
found the real treasure of Rapa Nui. But
unfortunately, I also found these pirates,
and I was captured. That’s when I
met the professor. He was the pirates’
HOSTAGE
!”
The professor sighed. “It’s true,” he
explained. “They forced me to unearth
many ancient treasures for them.”
“Bingo!” Trap squeaked with excitement.
“Tell us about the treasure of Rapa Nui. Is
it a chest of GOLD coins? Or a heap of
precious stones and pearls?”
Susie elbowed him sharply.
But Thea knew our cousin Trap too well.
She just smiled at him.
This is the
treasure of