A masterpiece from the past

The team is looking at the assembled text, each one thinking and trying to understand the message written down. Assoulil speaks:

"Yes, it's like that."

"What? Tell us, did you understand something?" asked Erna.

"Yes, look. We can divide the text into two parts. Let's translate what it says."

"I can write down what you tell us," said Arinas, taking out her notebook.

"Yes, you can start, Assoulil," said Amnay.

Everyone is waiting for Assoulil to translate the text. Even though all the members could try, Assoulil is the best suited for this. He had come across this language while researching the mystery of the Indus Valley Civilization. Assoulil starts reading aloud as Arinas writes down every word:

"Under the shadow of the lion,

The sands of time reveal their mark.

Only together can you set the spark."

"That's a puzzle," said Amnay.

"And we should solve it," added Arinas.

"The lion... Is there really a caged lion?" asked Titrit.

"Are you scared of it?" joked Assoulil.

"Of course not! Have you ever seen an archaeologist scared of animals?" retorted Titrit.

"The story is not about a caged lion," said Amnay.

"It's a statue," said Assirm.

Assirm, typically calm and reserved, seemed uninterested in the adventure, but his observation surprised everyone.

"You're right, Assirm. Now we should find that statue first," said Amnay.

"I've already found it," said Assirm.

The team looked at him in disbelief. He continued, "While looking for something unusual on the shelves with artifacts, I noticed a lion statue. We can return to its place to see it."

"Let's do that, guys," said Amnay.

The team followed Assirm as he guided them to the location of the lion statue.

"Here is the lion, but where is its shadow?" asked Erna.

"Guys, everyone turn off their flashlights," said Amnay.

They all looked at Amnay, then turned off their flashlights one by one, leaving only Amnay's flashlight on. He moved back until he was near a wall and pointed the flashlight at the statue. The shadow of the lion grew larger and projected onto the wall in front of it.

"What's the next step?" asked Assoulil.

"Wait, I can see a different rock. Look at it!" said Arinas.

"This happens only in movies," said Assirm.

"I'll try this," said Arinas.

She pushed the square-shaped rock. Suddenly, a horizontal rocky table emerged from beneath it, with four cylinder-shaped voids.

"That's amazing, Arinas! You did a good job," said Amnay.

"We all have to work together," replied Arinas.

The team looked at the rocky table, wondering about the next step. Assoulil spoke: "These cylinder-shaped voids should be filled with something. Do you think this will lead us to the location of the time machine?"

"The sands of time reveal their mark. This can help us," said Erna.

"Yes, maybe it has a relation to an hourglass," said Amnay.

"Hourglass... Hourglass…" thought Arinas. Then she said, "Oh yes, I came across four hourglasses earlier. I was wondering about their arrangement. Maybe they could help us."

Amnay asked Arinas to bring the hourglasses. She returned with four hourglasses, each unlike any they'd seen before.

"Maybe these hourglasses fit into the four cylinder-shaped voids," said Erna.

Amnay asked Arinas, Titrit, Assoulil, and Assirm to place the hourglasses into the voids. They fit perfectly, as if designed for this. Then, the team heard the sound of rocks grinding, revealing a secret staircase beneath them.

They were stunned.

"Only together can you set the spark. You really are an amazing team," said Amnay.

In a luxurious office, the museum owner sat in his chair, smoking a cigarette and watching surveillance footage. He was observing Amnay's team. Looking at a picture of Amnay, he said, "You look just like him. I'll reclaim what your father stole from me."

He picked up his phone and called Mr. Mano.

"Mano!"

Mano entered, apologizing for being late. "Sorry, Mr. Agguilas."

"You should always be here. The plan should begin now," said Mr. Agguilas.

"I'll tell the guys to get ready," replied Mano.

"You can go," said Mr. Agguilas.

When Mano left, Mr. Agguilas opened a drawer, taking out a stack of letters. Angrily, he muttered, "You want to destroy my life? Everything I built? No. I won't let you. I know you're here. You want revenge? I'll change the past. Yes, with the time machine… and then I'll kill you." He laughed maniacally.

Amnay's team descended the stairs with flashlights in hand. At the bottom, they found a tunnel leading to a rock table. In the center was a stone cylinder with six small diamonds embedded in it.

"This doesn't look like the picture I took… but why?" thought Erna.

Amnay turned to Arinas. "Puzzle continuation, Arinas."

"Yes," she said, pulling out her notebook.

"Listen, guys. This is the puzzle:

'When the moonlight touches the stone,

The path to the future shall be shown.

Turn the wheel to set time free.'

"I think the stone is that cylinder," said Erna.

"Yes, it should be," said Titrit.

"It's the only thing that makes sense," said Assirm.

"Flashlights are the only light source we have. There's no moonlight," said Arinas.

"You're right. Everyone, point your flashlight at the diamonds," instructed Amnay.

The team aimed their flashlights at the diamonds. A small stone wheel slowly rolled out from the cylinder.

"That's the wheel. We should turn it. Yes, we did it, guys!" exclaimed Assoulil.

"But what about our dreams? Are we really going to travel to the past?" asked Arinas.

"That's a good point," Assirm replied. "At best, this is just a visit to the museum, not to the future or the past. Besides, we don't even know if that stone cylinder is the alleged time machine."

"It has to be," said Titrit.

"I agree with Assirm," Amnay chimed in. "Something has felt strange since the beginning of this adventure. I was so excited to see artifacts in this museum, especially ones that are far away in other countries. For me, that felt like traveling. But I think these artifacts are stolen—and everything stolen should be returned to its rightful owner."

"And I am the owner," said a cold voice behind them.

The group turned to see Mr. Aguilas walking toward them.

"You've all done an excellent job," Mr. Aguilas continued. "Now, there's one more small favor I need from you as the owner of this museum."

Suddenly, Mr. Mano entered, clapping his hands. "My children have done it! Sorry for being late, Mr. Aguilas. Are the kids ready?"

"Yes, sir," Mr. Aguilas said curtly.

Amnay and his friends were still confused. Nothing made sense.

"I can't take this crap anymore," Assirm muttered. "I'm leaving. This silly adventure—I thought it could be interesting."

"You're not leaving this museum," Mr. Aguilas said, pulling out a gun. "You know too much. And the only way to keep a secret with someone is..." He smirked menacingly.

"Is to kill them," Assirm finished, glaring at him.

"Exactly," Mr. Aguilas said, leveling the gun. "I've built my own empire—money, power, everything. I do whatever I want: killing, stealing, you name it."

"But why did you choose us?" Amnay demanded angrily.

"You little students won't get me into trouble," Mr. Aguilas sneered. "You were perfect—bright, curious, and easy to manipulate. Intelligent young minds dreaming of visiting a national museum... and now you're going to use that time machine to change the past for me. In return, you'll get everything you ever dreamed of."

"I won't participate in your crimes," Assirm said firmly. "You belong in prison!"

"Oh, look at the brave one!" Mr. Aguilas laughed. Then, without hesitation, he pulled the trigger.

"NO!" Amnay, Erna, Assoulil, Titrit, and Arinas screamed as Assirm collapsed to the ground.

"What have you done, you monster?" Assoulil shouted.

"My rules are simple," Mr. Aguilas said coldly. "Obey—or die."

Amnay rushed to Assirm's side, cradling his head on his lap. "Stay with us, Assirm. We'll save you, I promise!"

"There's no time," Assirm whispered weakly. "I can smell my mother's scent... My mother, she's waiting for me. She passed away a month ago, and I've been lost without her. She was my support, my light in the darkness. She encouraged me to follow my dream of becoming an archaeologist—a teacher who would inspire students to love archaeology, just like she inspired me.

"But I was so blind. I worked day and night, chasing that dream, while she was suffering in silence, hiding her illness to let me pursue my 'silly' ambitions." Tears streamed down his face.

"My mom... I see her now. I'm going to meet her... to apologize..."

These were Assirm's final words. The room fell into silence as his lifeless body grew still.

The team was left in a heavy, mournful atmosphere, their sadness mingling with fear and anger as they stared at Mr. Aguilas, who stood unbothered, his gun still in hand.