Lief must descend into the heart of the Shifting Sands in order to find the fourth gem.
Plot[]
Lief is carried away by the sandstorm, realising the 'face' is caused by many bees, causing the buzzing. He called for barda and Jasmine, like in the vision he received from the opal in the city of the rats. He then dreamed that he was in his room and his parents ask him to take off the belt, and that his part in the quest is done, having had someone else to look for the remaining gems. Lief denied that this was true and that they were not his parents for they'd never ask that, jumping out of the window and running away. He is hit by an apple with the face of Queen Bee, telling him she controlled her bees with smoke. Then all the apples on the tree had faces of Queen Bee and were falling onto him. Lief woke up half buried in sand. He sees Kree and asks him to tell Barda and Jasmine where he was. He was then confronted with a terreocti and froze. Barda and Jasmine throw blisters at it, shooing it away. They then realise they were in front of the hive, the centre of the shifting sands. They climb it, and reach the top. Now Jasmine and Barda can hear the buzzing too. Lief asks them to lower him into the hive using a rope. He finds the lapis lazuli supporting the hive. He replaces it with the wooden bird to keep the structure from collapsing and tugs on the rope. The fire went out and the bees follow him. Barda and Jasmine find it hard to pull him, so Barda ties it to him and falls down to the ground. Lief has found Jasmine's knife and caught it when he tumbles up out of the hive. Jasmine throws a blister at the bees. They proceed.
