In Sage's Chamber, Phoebus' ax pierced the rock a few feet above the cliff where the artifact was shining. He pried the ax loose and started screwing in the second hook he needed to support the rope attached to his body harness while creating an elementary pulley system. Just in case the hooks would fail, he also made use of some of the sharp-edged rock in between. He tested the support by descending a few inches, tensing the rope, and gently kicking his body away from the chamber wall. It was successful.
Now he could abseil his way down to the artifact.
Aurelia was still on the ground and positioned herself underneath the cliff, ready to catch the artifact if it escaped Phoebus' grasp and fell. The orders were clear, it needed to be retrieved in one piece.
"Remember to use the chisel when working around the artifact, we can't risk damaging it with the ax," she reminded Phoebus.
"I know I know," Phoebus rappelled down until the artifact was level with his shoulders and anchored his back against the wall by turning around and securing his legs against the cliff. This made it possible to partially lean over the cliff and support his torso on his left arm leaving the right one free to feel how tightly the artifact was planted in there. He grabbed hold of the object's black glass sticking out from its calcified edges and attempted to give it a wiggle.
"It's really stuck in there," he said before letting go and removing his light-emitting crystal which he had partially tucked in his sleeve and balanced it on the cliff. Thereafter he retrieved the chisel and mallet from the satchel dangling over his shoulder. He moved his left arm a bit forward to hold the chisel in place and carefully started hammering it with the mallet.
"I wonder how it got here," he thought out loud as he chiseled around the object's fossilized exterior. Judging by the rocky surroundings' deterioration, it's clearly been there for a very long time.
After a few minutes of chiseling, the artifact had been loosened up like a tooth ripe for pulling. Phoebus put the tools back in his satchel and began wiggling the object again. This time it liberally moved along with Phoebus' hand, so he began giving it a few small tugs. He finished with a more forceful pull and was delighted to see the object finally being disconnected from the cliff.
"I got it!" he yelled down to Aurelia who had grown just as ecstatic after witnessing the glassy artifact glinting in his hand.
At that moment a loud thundering noise trembled the wall Phoebus was anchoring himself against. He quickly lost his balance and was forced to grab onto the rope. The trembling continued and practically shook the artifact out of his hand. It fell 50 feet before landing in Aurelia's arms. The impact knocked her off her feet but she and the artifact were both still in one piece.
"Phoebus get down from there!" she yelled as the trembling still hadn't subsided. He grabbed his crystal and rapidly started roping down the wall. By the time he got to the bottom, the trembling stopped.
Aurelia ran towards him holding the artifact in one hand and swinging the vacant one over his neck. He lifted his eyes and observed the still wall.
"What do you suppose that was?" he asked after Aurelia released his neck.
"I don't know. Maybe it was because of the artifact?" She reminded them both of what was in her arms. They examined the oddly shaped object from all angles up close, but other than noticing that it was either entirely made of or entirely covered with black glass, it still remained a mystery.
"If that's the case, we need to find Rufus and Alexis and get out of here," he emptied out all of the tools that were no longer necessary and placed the glassy artifact in his satchel. Aurelia gathered up all her scrolls and dove for the tunnel first at Phoebus' command. She still had to help him get through to the other chamber, but a different kind of resolve seemed to have gotten hold of him this time around and they both crawled through relatively quickly.
"How long has she been gone?" Phoebus asked, realizing that he had been so focused on climbing and mining, that he had completely lost track of time.
"I don't know," Aurelia had lost track too. They gathered the water container and cups into Aurelia's satchel and each grabbed a dagger out of an uneasy awareness that had filled them. Quickly they began scurrying through the passage where the red waves were still dancing, but something was different. They could no longer hear the chanting, nor could they feel the tremors that vibrated from below.
The noise and tremors had been tremendously unsettling earlier, but somehow having them cease so abruptly was even more disturbing.
There was no Alexis or Rufus at the end of the passage, instead, Aurelia and Phoebus found themselves facing a large opening.
"I have a very bad feeling, Phoebus," her voice was shaking and her eyes were scanning the opening from a distance. Phoebus took her hand and they slowly started walking forward toward the edge.
It took a while for them to try and register what had happened, there was a thick layer of dust that was still covering yet slowly fading over the scene below. The area where the dust layer was at its thickest stretched from some way down the rocky slope they were currently positioned over to the foot of the mountain. Piercing through the dust they could see Stridor's blazing volcanoes, and where the dust began to settle, a mixture of small figures that were unmistakably Turpis and Feroxes.
"Abominations," Aurelia gaped at the terrible sight which would soon become even worse. All of them were moving in the same direction: the foot of their mountain.
"A piece of the mountain must have broken off," Phoebus quickly assessed, "that's probably the trembling that we felt in Sage's Chamber."
"But, Rufus and Alexis wouldn't have -," she stopped in the middle of her hopeful thought when she saw Phoebus' facial expression.
"They couldn't have, they wouldn't have..." she put more distance between her and Phoebus.
He let out an uncomfortable sigh. "We have to go, Al," he said sombrely.
"Without them? Have you completely gone mad?" She protested, "We aren't even sure they're down there," her voice pitched.
"We won't have time to find out either," he tilted his head toward the swarming crowd beneath the mountain.
"No, no." she shook her head. "No! No! No!" she started yelling louder and louder as tears relentlessly poured from her sapphire eyes. Phoebus grabbed her and pulled her away from the opening before placing his hand over her mouth after her screaming began to echo through the cave. Aurelia tried to wrestle free with all her might, sobbing uncontrollably. Phoebus was a lot bigger and stronger than her, but it required a lot of effort to restrain her outburst. Eventually, they were both half-lying half-standing as Aurelia continued her attempts to break free.
"Here you are! What happened? What's wrong with her?" a panting Dominic emerged from the passage. "I couldn't find you in either of the chambers, so I just followed the noise. We really need to leave!" he ordered before looking around the cave as though trying to find something.
"- where's Alexis? Where's Ruf-," he quickly put two and two together after noticing Aurelia's worsened state at the mentioning of their names.
"Al, we need to leave," Phoebus said softly as he tried to calm her by stroking her hair. Her constant budging made this difficult. "We need to leave. If they're still al-," he stopped himself. Whether for Aurelia's sake or his own, he couldn't finish that sentence. "The only way we can help them is if we leave now!"
Aurelia's squirming eased up. She shut her eyes tightly and with her hands squeezed Phoebus' arms that were pinning hers down. That's when he slowly removed his hand from her mouth and helped her to her feet before escorting her toward the passage. Dominic grabbed her satchel and started leading the way back to the beach cave where Lucas was waiting. Phoebus plodded behind Aurelia as they began their long descent down the mountain, trying to focus more on his sister than the enclosing walls.
"Lucas sent me in after the commotion stopped," Dominic mentioned over his shoulder, "said it's an irregular tremor and I needed to get you out as soon as possible."
"Rockfall," Phoebus barely explained. Even though the trip back down was somewhat easier, they had to move a lot faster than before and this proved a very straining exercise.
Dominic didn't know how to ask about Alexis and Rufus again, so instead he opted for, "Did you get the artifact?"
"We got it," Phoebus muttered.
Whether it was the adrenaline, the emotion, or part of the mystery that enshrouded Mount Timor, the return trip was made very swiftly, and the trio soon emerged one by one from the last passage into the presence of an extremely anxious Lucas and an overly aroused Aquila.
"Thank Dominus," Lucas breathed out as soon as he saw their faces.
"Here," a solemn Phoebus handed his satchel to Lucas who quickly peeked inside.
"Great!" He applauded a job well done. "Where are Alexis and Rufus?" he lingered in the direction of the passage as if expecting them to jump out at any moment.
"They're not coming," Phoebus said in a detached voice.
Lucas shot a look of confusion in his direction and then properly examined Aurelia's grubby face and bloodshot eyes. She was sitting on her haunches, not making eye contact with anybody.
"Where are they?" Lucas asked, all excitement having vanished from his voice.
"We think they were caught in the rockfall that caused the tremor."
"You think?"
Phoebus shrugged his shoulders, also avoiding eye contact. "The last passage they took led to an opening above the slope where the fall occurred. There was no sign of them." He was doing his best to remain calm and practical; they still needed to get back to the mainland.
Dominic was standing stunned behind Aurelia, awkwardly placing a hand of comfort on her shoulder. Aquila had also positioned herself next to the despairing Aurelia in an attempt to comfort her. She didn't react to either gesture.
Lucas was wearing a terribly concerned look on his face. There was no use in asking any more questions for the time being. If Alexis and Rufus truly were involved in the rockfall, no doubt the Turpis would have gotten to them by now. Either way, it meant no good news to the rest of the party. They needed to get the artifact back safely to the fort before they would be discovered, which was only a matter of time.
"It would've been more ideal to leave on griffonback while they were all distracted, but we won't all fit on Aquila,"
"Angelo and Mateo aren't back yet?" Phoebus asked.
"No they're not," Lucas said irritably.
A loud cry lured them out of the cave and onto the beach. Mateo and another Rider were racing toward them tailed by a soaring Leo. The other Rider's arm was hooked around Mateo's neck for support. He looked very roughed up and his frame was feeble compared to Mateo's.
"Do you have it?" Mateo shouted from several feet away.
Lucas didn't answer, he just stared in disbelief clearly recognizing the other Rider's face.
"We have it!" Phoebus answered on his behalf.
"Great," he halfheartedly congratulated. "Now let's get off of this cursed Island!" Mateo and the injured Rider reached the cave and stumbled inside.
"Seraphus?" Lucas asked, still dumbfounded.
"Goodness Luke, it looks like you're about to kiss me," the Rider sat down against the wall. He had the same braided hair as Mateo. There were other similarities too, except Seraphus' right eye was swollen shut, he had a nasty horizontal scar under his left eye, and the rest of his face and neck were covered in varying shades of black and blue. Examining a bit lower, one could also see several cuts covering the visible parts of his torso and limbs. At a quick glance, his left leg may have been broken as well.
"No time for that," Mateo ordered, "where's the artifact?" he asked. Lucas held up the satchel in response.
"Good, now everyone who can fit needs to grab what they can and get on top of a griffon," he helped Seraphus onto a surprisingly calm Leo while instructing Lucas with his head to get a move on.
Lucas wasted no time in grabbing Aurelia and gently placing her on top of Aquila who was still trying to comfort her. He climbed on next and Dominic jumped up behind him.
"Where are Angelo and Draco?" Phoebus asked as Mateo got up behind Seraphus.
"We were intercepted by a party of Turpis. Angelo held them off so we could come get you and fly back to the fort."
"Alone?" Phoebus looked Eastward, as though contemplating. "I'll go look for him, you should go now."
"Phoebus," Aurelia's quavering voice could finally be heard.
"I'll come back with Angelo. Go, get her out of here," he petitioned Lucas who looked at Mateo. There was no time for deliberation, so Mateo nodded.
"Phoebus!" Aurelia yelled as both griffons ascended and disappeared into the sky.