Major Mayhem McGiggles was a detective. He wore a tiny blue hat, big round boots, and a magnifying glass on a string.
He lived near the Hidden Oasis. It was a secret place in the warm yellow desert. There were tall green palms. There was cool, shiny water. Pink birds splashed in the pool. Little fish went zip, zip, zip.
One bright morning, Major Mayhem heard a sound.
Plink! Plonk! PLOOP!
“Oh!” said Major Mayhem. “That is a mystery sound!”
He opened his detective notebook. On the first page, he drew a big circle. “Clue number one,” he said. “A plink. A plonk. A ploop.”
Archaeologist Ada came walking over the sand. Ada had a soft brush, a little trowel, and a hat with a very wide brim.
“Hello, Detective,” said Ada. “I found an old stone by the oasis. It has a picture of a golden treasure box.”
Adventurer Bo came next. Bo had a red backpack and a bouncy jump. “Hello! I saw sparkly footprints. They go behind the palms!”
Then Treasure Hunter Tia popped up from behind a bush.
“Hello!” she said. “I heard a dragon sneeze.”
“Sneeze?” asked Major Mayhem.
“Ah-CHOO!” boomed a voice.
The water made little waves. The pink birds flew up. Flap, flap, flap!
Major Mayhem took a deep breath. He was a little scared. Dragons were big. Dragons had claws. Dragons could roar.
But Major Mayhem was a brave detective.
“We will look,” he said. “We will be kind. We will stay together.”
Ada brushed sand from the old stone. Under the dust were three pictures: a blue feather, a round red berry, and a silver bell.
“A clue path!” said Ada.
Bo found a blue feather near a palm tree.
Tia found a round red berry under a rock.
Major Mayhem heard a tiny ting-a-ling near the water. He lifted a lily leaf. There was the silver bell!
“Plink, plonk, ploop,” said Major Mayhem. “The bell made the mystery sound in the water.”
Behind the lily leaves was a small cave. It was not dark inside. It glowed orange and gold.
“May we come in?” called Major Mayhem.
A big green nose peeked out.
Then came two big gold eyes.
Then came the Dragon.
The Dragon was very big. But his face was very sad. A silver bell was stuck on the tip of his tail.
“Ting-a-ling,” said the bell.
“Ah-CHOO!” sneezed the Dragon.
A tiny puff of warm smoke floated out. It did not burn anything. It smelled like cinnamon toast.
“I am sorry,” said the Dragon in a small, rumbly voice. “I was looking for my treasure. Then this bell got stuck on my tail. It tickles me. Now I cannot stop sneezing.”
Major Mayhem looked closely. “Aha! Clue number two: a tickly tail.”
Ada used her soft brush. “Hold still,” she said.
Bo held the Dragon’s tail gently. “You are doing great!” he said.
Tia gave the Dragon a cool oasis leaf to hold.
Major Mayhem carefully lifted the bell.
Ting!
The bell came free.
The Dragon smiled. “No more sneeze!”
Then he sneezed one last time.
“Ah-CHOO!”
Poof!
A little cloud of glitter flew into the cave. Under the glitter was a treasure chest.
The chest had a blue feather, a red berry, and a silver bell painted on top.
“My treasure!” said the Dragon. “I hid it here long ago. But I forgot the clue song.”
Major Mayhem tapped his notebook. “Blue feather. Red berry. Silver bell.”
Everyone sang, “Blue, red, silver, one-two-three!”
Click!
The treasure chest opened.
Inside were four shiny golden detective badges, four tiny jewel cups, and a mountain of honey cookies shaped like stars.
“One badge for each helper,” said the Dragon.
Major Mayhem got the biggest badge. It said: BEST DETECTIVE OF THE HIDDEN OASIS.
Ada got an Archaeologist badge. Bo got an Adventurer badge. Tia got a Treasure Hunter badge.
The Dragon got a badge too. It said: KIND DRAGON FRIEND.
They sat by the cool water. They ate honey cookies. The pink birds danced. The fish went zip, zip, zip.
Major Mayhem smiled under his tiny blue hat.
“Mystery solved,” he said.
“Teamwork solved it,” said Ada.
“Cookies helped too,” said Bo.
Tia giggled. “That is the best clue of all.”
And from that day on, whenever a sound went plink, plonk, or ploop at the Hidden Oasis, Major Mayhem McGiggles and his friends were ready to help.