The Mystery of the Gobi Desert
Diocesan Boys’ School Secondary Division, Nathan Vincent Ma, Fiction: Group 3
T
he story of how the Gobi Desert came to behas always been a mystery. People used to
tell of heroic battles in the desert, the once powerful kingdoms that sprouted out of a
barren wasteland. Only over the recent years it has grown bigger, covering three times
the area it used to. Those once powerful nations have disappeared. The infrastructures
have seemingly evaporated. Nothing is left. The cause has been a mystery until today.But today,
this mystery unfolds and it all begins now…
In a shabby wooden hut outside the crowded city, there lived a man in his middle ages; his
name was Yang-Wei, a mage who lived outside of society and was a descendant of KharaBaatar,
the once great king of the Kara Hot city in the Gobi Desert. This mage, although he was a recluse,
he had one friend, Chang-Shi, an impoverished geologist desperately in need of money. Although
their interests clashed, the bond of their friendship was resilient.
It was just another normal day for Yang-Wei, picking herbs for an antidote against poison for
his own interest and some soil samples for Chang-Shi’s research. When bringing his overflowing
bag of herbs, his bag broke and rolled downhill towards his hut at a rapid pace. His house being a
wooden hut could not impede the heavy bag and so it caved in.
“What a mess, how am I supposed to clean this up?” thought Yang-Wei. So he lumbered over
most reluctantly and began to sluggishly clean his house. In the process, he noticed that his
family vase had broken; the lid still stuck onto the mouth as it always had been for two thousand
years. Never had anyone been able to open it. It was just then, that he saw a scroll lying in the
remains of the jar. Out of curiosity, he unraveled the yellowed paper and to his surprise, he saw a
map of the Gobi Desert. The signature of KharaBaatar proved that the map was authentic, showing
the location of Kara Hot. He instantaneously picked up his satchel, a few potions and talismans
and bolted out the hut in his tattered clothes. Once in the city, he took off to Chang-Shi’s house
and explained to him his findings.
“What are you doing here dressed like this? People may think you’re crazy.”
“No time for that, I had to get this to you.”
“It’s a map of the Gobi Desert, what a… Wait, is that the ancient city of Kara Hot? There must
be a whole vat of riches in there and we could… Oh just think of it.”
“So you want to join? Good. Here’s the plan…”
The next morning, the friends met up at the airport.They joined a tour to the Gobi Desert since
treasure hunting was forbidden and a tour group would be the perfect cover. Once they arrived
at theirdestination, they snuck off on a visit to the tortoise monument of KharaKourum. Both of
them took what was essential to the expedition. The Gobi Desert, although a barren wasteland,
was full of its own dangers, and many times the duo ran into these traps. Out of nowhere, Gobi
bears and Gray wolves popped out of sand and rock structures and snow leopards leapt down from
the high mountains they passed. After passing these hazards, they were left in the dust to tend to
their heavy wounds which burned even more under the sun. The pain was intense and they just
barely managed to keep on walking. The desert treated them harshly and brought scorching heat
in the day and bitter cold in the night. The Takhis, the last wild horse breed on earth, spared them
