In the sprawling realm of Eldoria, where artistry and magic coalesce, Lucius Evergold, a skilled artisan with an innate connection to mystical energies, embarks on a lifelong journey of creation, discovery, and action. Lucius's dream is to craft art...
I followed up with, "What was that power? Was that your magic?" Yuna crossed her arms, "No idea what you are talking about. The ground just swallowed us up." I asked, "No, that was clearly yo-" Yuna snapped, "The ground swallowed us up, how lucky! Now, if you're done gawking, let's see where we are." I looked around; there was sand on the ceiling, but otherwise, the floor was made of sandstone. The corridor we landed in was long; the end was blacked out by the darkness both in front and back. I asked, "Should we turn around or continue forward?" Yuna sighed, "It matters not; we have no idea where we are either way."
The air in the corridor carried a subtle mustiness, indicative of the ancient passageways we found ourselves in. The sandstone floor felt cool beneath my feet as Yuna and I proceeded forward, the uncertain darkness ahead veiling the corridor's secrets. Each step echoed softly, creating a rhythmic cadence that resonated through the unseen chambers.
The walls, adorned with weathered hieroglyphs and faded reliefs, spoke of a history long forgotten. Strange symbols and depictions of forgotten deities intertwined with the sandstone's natural grooves. It was as if the very essence of the ruins had seeped into the rock, weaving a narrative that only time could decipher. Yuna walked with an air of nonchalance, her silhouette partially illuminated by the faint glow of her magic. The sand on the ceiling created an inverted dune-like pattern, giving the corridor an unusual, almost surreal atmosphere. I couldn't shake the feeling that these passages held untold stories and hidden wonders, waiting to be unveiled with each step.
I began hearing a buzzing sound throughout the corridor sort of like a humming, or maybe even a voice? I asked, "You hear that?" Yuna said, "Shh" We both walked along listening to what I began recognizing as a voice. The voice began getting louder as we walked a long weirdly it was in a language I recognized. I heard the words child, killer, lied, bloodline, pain, fear, wrong, right, contradiction. The words were random, but they came in different sounding voices almost like multiple people were speaking at once. I was getting a little creeped out, but we continued forward into the darkness.
The voices grew louder and began to form conversations a woman's voice rang out into the darkness. The woman screamed loudly, "Gin they are here we need to leave right away!" A man's voice rang back, "Dammit no time to waste they will kill us if they see us." Yuna froze in place for a moment. Her body seemed to break out into chills, "Mom? Dad?" I asked, "Everything ok?" Her mouth hung open like a fish, "No it's nothing just keep going." We walked as the chanting continued it was almost painful as they seemed to speak right into my brain. Finally laughter could be felt in the darkness ahead of us.
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We noticed a small figure in the darkness; we both stopped in place. Yuna readied her blade, waiting for the figure. The figure didn't seem to move until we moved a little closer; the figure was small, I would guess about 8 years old. She smiled at us sweetly. I asked, "Little girl? What are you doing down here?" She didn't respond to me as she held her white teddy bear, petting it in her lap as she leaned against the sandstone. The little girl held an odd-looking bear with unnaturally sharp teeth; it certainly wasn't a bear I'd ever sell. Instead, the girl looked at Yuna, ignoring me, "Yuna! You're home! Mr. Chompers, and I were getting lonely." Yuna dropped her sword on the ground, visibly shaken up now; she muttered, "Crystal? Crystal!" She made to run towards the little girl, but I put out my arms, blocking her. I exclaimed, "Wait, Yuna; it could be a trap!"
Yuna shook her head, "No, that's my sister; let me go!" The little girl smiled, "Mommy and daddy won't be coming home today!" The little girl stood up, approaching Yuna, "Why is that, Yuna? Where did they go?" Yuna's voice broke, "They tried to kill me, so... so I..." Crystal smiled, "So you what?" Yuna seemed to swallow, "I had to do it; I wanted to protect you!" The little girl frowned, "Protect me? Don't you mean you wanted to protect yourself?" The tiny girl tilted her head now, "Murderer. Murderer. Murderer." Her laughs grew wilder as her smile grew wider, "You killed them, Yuna. You killed them yourself! Monster! Monster!" I got mad now; I went to shove the little girl; her body felt light; she smashed into the sandstone bricks, laughing. Yuna began to cry, "No, they tried to kill me; I had to defend myself. The covenant saved me, gave me a way to fight back." A deeper voice echoed out from the corridor, "You crave acceptance, but deep down, you know you're unworthy of it. Your hands are stained with the blood of your own family. Your sister, where is she? Dead! Your little cult is responsible! What did you do to stop them? Nothing! Useless, useless, useless!" The chants ramped up as Yuna held her head, tears now streaming down her face.
