Tales of Zestiria: The World Beyond

Chapter 20

(Note here guys! If you're wondering why I'm calling Celica Crowe by her last name, it's because there are two characters of the same name and I typically go by last name basis in real life if this happens. Because Celica from Wonders of Mysteria is a spirit she doesn't have a last name, so she gets to be called "Celica" while Velvet's sister is called "Crowe." This is also why I call Artorius "Velvet's brother in law" instead of his name. I could use his last name or use his name since it's a variation of "Arthur" but he's not important, so he gets no attention.)

Crowe greeted the party with a warm "good morning" when the sun rose. She was ecstatic to find Velvet had gotten up without help, which made Velvet somewhat uncomfortable. Velvet shook it off and met the others in the dining room where Laphi was also present. Magilou leaned on the wall with her arms crossed and asked to talk to Velvet in private. Velvet agreed and the two went off.

Celica headed back inside to hear Sorey, Vanessa, and Crowe talking about ruins. Crowe said there was one nearby that looked ancient. Both Sorey and Vanessa got excited to hear about it and before they took off, Eleanor stopped them. They needed a plan before they went out to ruin hunting. Arthur was in bed sick so some had to stay with him while others could go and see the ruins.

Mikleo, Edna, Zaveid, Lailah, Eizen, Alisha, and Rose agreed to stay while Sorey, Vanessa, Eleanor, Magilou, Velvet, and Celica were to head out. Crowe and Laphi insisted that Velvet stayed behind, but she fought back and said that Sorey and Vanessa would get themselves in a world of trouble if she didn't go. They let her go with waves of goodbye, then Crowe whispered something to Laphi, and he nodded.

"These ruins are amazing! Look at them! They are ancient!" Sorey was amazed by the ruins. On the outside, it was a grouping of pillars that surrounded a large circular tower with an entrance to go inside where the ruins went underground.

"This is strange." Velvet interrupted Sorey's glorifying of the ruins.

"Let the kid have some fun," Magilou said.

"Just hold on for a second. This wasn't here before. I'd remember if a ruin like this was close to my village."

"Maybe it was just out of sight," Vanessa suggested.

"No, a tower this big and ancient, I would have known."

"Either way, let's head in. There might be something in here worth finding." Celica suggested.

"I like that idea!" Sorey exclaimed.

"Now there's three of them." Velvet sighed.

Deeper inside was a staircase that swirled down into a cavern. It felt like everything was going to fall apart; the walls were cracked, and the stone stairs felt as if they were wood. It made exploring feel dangerous and when they finally reached the bottom, it was a relief to feel the ground was solid. But that wasn't the end of their problems. The ruins went further outward. A door that had a long hallway and another room laid right in front of them. Celica was almost crying at how big it was.

No matter where they stepped, there seemed to be more and more to the ruins. Even finding their way out was going to be hell. There were also monsters at every turn, some normal hellions, others were much different. They looked like skeletons with metallic wings that dripped a black liquid. Without an end in sight, the party finally found a break when they cleared out a room and sat down. Eleanor wiped the sweat from her forehead as the others regained their strength slowly. Sorey did bring water and some snacks for them to help, which was nice.

"This never ends!" Vanessa complained.

"Regretting coming here huh?" Celica joked to lighten the mood.