"The Yucatan peninsula is said to be the home of an ancient golden city, containing a treasure that is indescribably valuable and rare," John read out loud from the manuscript he and Serena, his partner, had discovered on their previous expedition.

"I really just don't understand. There isn't anything on the map that shows a city. We would see it from satellites if a large golden city sat in the middle of the Yucatan Peninsula," whined Serena, perplexed.

"It has to be there. We looked everywhere else it could have been. It's the only place left that the Mayans had touched that we haven't looked at," John stated sternly, with a hint of frustration in his voice.

"Well, how do we even know if it's real? It could just be a myth or a legend," questioned Serena, crossing her arms in front of her chest.

John sighed deeply, "I know it sounds far-fetched, but this manuscript is a genuine artifact from the Mayan civilization. Plus, the details depicted in it are so vivid and precise that it's hard to ignore them." 

Serena remained unconvinced, "Fine, we can go, but then I'm done. I want out."

John nodded, "Understood. But let's not give up just yet. Who knows what we might find out there?" with conviction. 

 "We need to get going. Our flight south boards at ten tonight. Are you packed?" questioned John

Serena nodded hesitantly. John could tell she didn't want to go

    The plane landed in Merida, Mexico, at 1:00 AM. John and Serena left the airport with their small food and water supply in the trunk of their guide's Jeep.

John and Serena barely spoke Spanish enough to get their point across. They told the Driver where they wanted to go, and he took them. John and Serena went over their plans in the back of the car. "The mountain pass is a surefire way to die," sighed John. "Hundreds have attempted to go through there, and none have made it." "What do we do then?" asked Serena. "We go over," John said with a look of sheer terror forming on his face. He folded the map and put it away. They drove in silence. 

They had been traveling for a few hours when the car suddenly stopped, and the driver spoke the few words of English he knew. "This is as close as I go," he said forebodingly. John and Serena exited the car, and as soon as they got their luggage, the driver was off.

Dark clouds stormed above, and the wind blew. "We have to be fast, Serena," yelled John over the gusts of wind. They began their hike. John and Serena walked for a few hours before reaching a cliff wall. "This is the only way besides the pass," said John. "Fine by me," Serena said as she pulled their climbing gear out of her bag. The couple scaled the wall, with a few near misses, but never finding too much struggle. It almost seemed too easy. John and Serena continued on, silenced by the understanding that they might never leave the jungle just as all the others who had come before them. Their silence was broken when they reached something they never expected.

What is this?" Serena asked as she approached a large carved stone wall. "I'd assume it's the entrance," stated John with annoyance. John began to closely inspect the wall until he noticed what seemed to be a collection of buttons. The part that stumped John was the absence of guidance or directions. All he could do was guess. John pushed the center button with the hope of the door opening, but it didn't. Suddenly, the floor dropped out from below John before he could move. He landed in a tube, sliding swiftly. He wasn't hurt but couldn't help but theorize what was coming. Serena stood over the hole, entirely perplexed and terrified. All she heard was a scream. John finally came tumbling to a halt in a square room. "I'm okay! Just slide down!" John yelled up the tube. "Coming!" Serena answered. She jumped. Just as John did, she slid and slid and slid until she tumbled out of the slide, similarly to John.

Serena and John gathered, shared water and food, and then continued. After briefly traveling down the only passage that left the room, they reached a fork in their path. There were now three doors.

 Above each door was a carving of what looked to be deities. "These must mean something," said Serena as John moved forward to inspect them in more detail. On the left door sat a picture of a humanoid snake, which John knew to be Quetzalcoatl, the god of the wind. What John found interesting was the slight breeze he felt, only coming from the left tunnel. Over the next door sat a picture of a man with a skull for a head, no flesh whatsoever. He knew this to be Ah Puch, the stinking God of Death. He noticed a slight stench in this tunnel, which he knew to be the stench of a decomposing body. He shuddered in fear. Finally, he inspected the right door. He saw a carving of a quail on the shoulder of a man holding a torch. He gawked at the realization that this was  Xipe Totec, the Aztec God of Gold. John saw a glisten down the hall and knew this was the way to go. "This way," he said satisfactorily to Serena, who followed without question. Serena had learned that when John said he knew something, he knew it, and you could trust that.

The tunnel was long and damp. Vines hung from the ceiling, and moss rotted on the floor. The only light was that of the small headlamps that John and Serena had with their climbing gear. "Turn your headlamp off," John ordered of Serena. "We need to conserve our light for now. "Good idea," Serena agreed. They carried on. They could feel that they were nearing the end of the tunnel because they heard running water ahead. 

    Upon reaching the end of the tunnel, John noticed a sudden drop below him. He decided to look down, seeing a waterfall from a small crack above them that ran straight into the darkness.

The only other thing in that room was one more doorway on the right wall. "We have to jump," said Serena with a note of terror itching in her voice. "I know," said John, sounding defeated. Both of them knew. They knew this could be the end for either of them. But they also knew they needed to keep going. They had come closer than any other explorer had without dying, and they couldn't let that slip. John stepped back a few paces while counting. "One, Two, Three, Four," He readied and ran. Serena yelped. John grasped at the edge of the doorway as he nearly slid off the side, but he was okay. He made it. Serena stared down. "You can do it," said John, sensing Serena's reluctance. She walked back in silence. Four paces, just as John did. She ran, leaped, and grabbed Johns's hand, but her foot slipped. John collapsed to the floor, still grasping her hand and the wall beside him. He leaned back and leaned back, and leaned back. He heaved, pulled, and pulled until she was back on the ledge. They made it. Serena wiped herself off and stood up. "Thank you," she said. They carried on.