
Tale twist

A Day in Ancient Egypt
Listen to audiobook
The Mysterious Puzzle
The school bell rang, and Felix practically bolted out of class. History again. His least favorite. Why was it always so boring?
Maya was waiting for him outside, sitting under the oak tree with Sketch, her sleek black cat, curled in her lap.
“Survived history class?” she asked with a grin.
“Barely,” Felix groaned. “Who cares about old pharaohs? It’s like watching paint dry.”
Maya laughed. “It’s not that bad. There’s some cool stuff... somewhere in there.”
“Doubt it,” Felix muttered. “I’d rather be in the treehouse, working on something that actually matters.”
They began walking home, Sketch purring softly in Maya’s arms. Felix kicked a pebble along the sidewalk. “Why does it even matter, though? It’s all dead people.”
Before Maya could respond, something strange caught Felix’s eye. A man was sitting on a nearby bench, though Felix could have sworn no one was there a moment ago. The man, dressed in an old-fashioned coat, smiled as they passed.
“History boring, is it?” he said, his voice soft but somehow sharp. “Maybe this will help.”
Before they could react, the man vanished. Just... gone. In his place sat a small wooden box, intricately carved, with two pieces of a puzzle resting inside. A note was folded neatly beside it.
Maya picked up the note, her brow furrowing. “‘There’s an important message for you from the future. You’ll be able to read it only when the last piece is placed and the puzzle is complete.’”
Felix exchanged a glance with Maya. “What do you think it means?”
“I don’t know,” Maya whispered, picking up the box. “Let’s go to the treehouse and figure it out.”
In the quiet comfort of Felix’s treehouse, their secret hideout, they placed the puzzle pieces on the table. The walls were lined with Felix’s gadgets, Maya’s sketches pinned to the wooden beams.
“I’ve never seen anything like this,” Felix muttered, turning the box in his hands. “It feels... old.”
Maya carefully placed the two pieces of the puzzle on the table. “What if we just put these pieces together? Maybe it’ll show us something.”
Felix nodded. “Couldn’t hurt.”
Maya picked up the first piece, clicking it into place with the second. Instantly, the box began to glow, a soft golden light that quickly grew brighter, filling the room with warmth. Felix’s heart raced as the glow intensified.
“Maya... what did you—”
The world around them spun. Colors blurred, the walls of the treehouse melted away, replaced by swirling sand and brilliant sunlight. Felix blinked, his head spinning as he tried to focus.
When the world steadied, they weren’t in the treehouse anymore.
Felix stared at the landscape before them—mudbrick houses, bustling markets, and towering stone structures. In the distance, a massive pyramid loomed under the bright desert sun.
“Maya,” Felix whispered, eyes wide. “I think we’re in Ancient Egypt.”
Sketch, perched calmly beside them, simply meowed as if nothing at all had changed.