The Journey (Guardians, #1)

Chapter Eight - Pillars Of Light

The keeper made landfall and Danny, Damian and Clarissa hopped off his enormous shoulder, onto the cliff that lined the shoreline.

“There you go,” the keeper said, his deep voice reverberating against the cliff.

“Thank you, Nahl, Keeper of the Still Waters,” Clarissa said. “We are forever indebted to you.”

“I’m afraid this is where we part ways though.” The keeper pushed away from the cliff. “The memory of the day my people fell prevents me from taking you any further. Good luck in the Hall of Mirrors. I pray your journey ends well.”

“Goodbye,” Danny said as the keeper disappeared beneath the moonlit sea. They ascended the cliff thereafter. The rocks were still wet and slippery from the rain. At the top, they stood before a city lying in ruins, and at its very center stood the remains of a magnificent tower.

The tower stretched higher than anything Danny had ever seen, its summit lost somewhere beyond the clouds. “Wow. This is incredible.”

“Indeed, it is,” Damian said, leading the way down a cobblestoned street and towards the tower. “This was built a long time ago, by an ancient civilization that thrived long before Adam and Eve. We know very little about them, only that they were masters of magic, and that they were at the pinnacle of their existence when their city was destroyed by a rain of fire and brimstone.”

“Were there any survivors?” Danny asked.

“There were a few. You just bade farewell to one of them.”

“Nahl? Really?”

“He is the last of his kind,” Clarissa said. She was about to say more when her voice trailed away. Her hand was suddenly upon the hilt of her sword.

“What is it?” Danny asked.

Damian put a hand to his lips, gesturing for silence. They listened intently and heard the unmistakable sound of movement, a series of clinks against the cobblestones. They wheeled around and Danny felt his skin crawl as his eyes focused on the creature creeping towards them. It was a scorpion, and it was almost as large as a minivan.

The scorpion’s exoskeleton glinted under the moonlight. Its four pairs of legs clinked against the cobblestone as it crept forward. Its pincers snapped menacingly. Danny wanted to run but found that his entire body was immobilized by fear. Clarissa took aim with her bow, letting an arrow fly. The arrow did nothing but anger it.

The scorpion charged towards them, its dull sets of eyes concealing all emotion. They ran down the cobblestoned streets, between the remnants of old buildings and towards the magnificent tower. At the foot of the tower was a temple with a glass ceiling. They ascended its steps and went through its double doors, sealing them just as the scorpion came, snapping its pincers.

They’d emerged into a cavernous hall, the glass ceiling hanging high above their heads. The glass was covered in grime, but the ceiling was broken in several places. Beams of moonlight flooded into the hall through these holes. And clustered around these pillars of light were more giant scorpions, and a number of snakes with bodies as thick as tree trunks, and fangs the size of elephant tusks.

Daniel was about to scream at the top of his lungs, but Clarissa placed a firm hand upon his shoulder. Damian pointed to both his eyes with two fingers, then towards the giant snakes and scorpions. It was only then that Danny noticed how still the creatures were, making them look as though they were carved out of stone.

“They’re sleeping.”

Clarissa mouthed the words as Damian surveyed the hall. When he saw that the coast was clear, he motioned for them to move and led the way further into the hall.