88 Who is She?
Arthur grabbed Jack and said, “we are not dying today.”
Two huge fire wings came out of his back, and Arthur stopped the fall. But as he looked up, a strong wind came down, cutting everything, even the sturdy walls of stone.
“We can’t go back. We need to go down. Jack, hold on tight.”
Arthur dashed down like a dragon. It was so fast that his cheeks moved and his black hair was a mess.
Jack was the same, but he was also screaming like a frightened kid. It was a funny scene, but the situation was too dire for Arthur to laugh at that.
The fissure was dark inside, so Arthur was the only one that could see anything. He kept going down, hoping to find the end.
“Well, at least that scary wind is only in the upper parts.” Arthur said.
That did not change the fact that the place would presumably be dangerous.
It was hard to tell how long they had descended, but the ground finally touched their toes.
“I-I’m alive?” Jack said.
Jack touched all parts of his body, making sure he was alive. After that, he had to throw up.
“Aggrr, Arthur, I don’t want a flying beast anymore.”
A disgusting liquid was spit on the ground. Arthur ignored that, but focused his attention on scanning the place.
They were between a fissure. The ground down there had grass above it, and lots of water puddles.
How was a treasure supposed to be in there? Arthur kept asking himself that.
The explanation for the fissure being underwater was probably because the water levels rose, and it flood.
But it was not a normal fissure. The water from above could not enter, as if magic was protecting the place.
“Look, there’s a path there. Let’s go, Jack.” Arthur said as he pointed to the path.
Jack was busy throwing up, but still answered in a low tone, “I’m going.”
With steady steps, they explored the area. That fissure looked like a cave, and the more than went in, more strange it became.
Insects crawling on the walls, the howling of the wind, and a feeling as someone was watching them.
“What was that?” Jack said as he pointed to an area.
Arthur could see clearly. It was just a rat.
“It’s a rat, calm down. But how did these animals end up down here?”
It was fascinating to see life down there. But if these animals could live there, then beasts could do the same…
“I couldn’t tell it was a rat. It’s dark down here. How are you seeing, anyway?”
“I’m me.”
“…”
The pathway was narrow, and it kept getting worse the deeper Arthur went.
A sound of feet crushing moss and water dripping from the wall cracks. It was a tense atmosphere, and then Arthur and Jack saw something extraordinary.
“What’s that?” Jack said.
The narrow path turned into a huge open area, with a crystal clear lake in the middle, and strange buildings around it.
These buildings weren’t houses, but more like worshiping monuments. An energy came from the top of each one of these stone monuments, and they all mixed in the lake.
“I do not know.”
Just by looking at it, it did not feel safe. Arthur heard countless times about beings that called themselves gods, and now it seemed someone was getting some sort of energy from these pillars.
Arthur had to keep looking. It was not as if he had another choice. There was no way he could return, at least not using the same path he took.
“Let’s keep moving Jack, we need to-“
Jack, who was just beside Arthur, was not standing anymore and was lying on the ground, helpless.
“He can’t listen to our conversation, at least not yet.”
A soft voice. Arthur first checked to see if Jack was okay, and he was. He turned around to gaze at the lake, where a pretty woman with white hair flew over the water.
She did not need wings to fly, and did that using unknown ways.
“Who are you?” Arthur said.
The moment he saw her, he knew that if she was an enemy; he was dead.
[Level: ???]
He could not see her level.
“Me? You know me already, he.”
“I know you? No, that’s not possible.”
“Didn’t your friends tell you they had a flying turtle?”
The woman was now in front of Arthur, and she smelled just like flowers.
“Wait, are you that turtle?”
“NO! Of course not. The turtle is my pet. Are you calling me ugly?”
“N-no, I’m sorry.”
“I’ll let you live this time. I’m Skye, and you are?”
Skye was her name, and she had pale skin, perfect features, and a body no one could resist. Her hair was the same color as the moon, and her eyes were as yellow as the sun.
The most extraordinary thing was her aura, which made Arthur lose breath just being near her.
“Arthur, but hey, how did you end up here?” Arthur said.
He was curious why such a powerful person would be down there, especially a good-looking lady like her.
Skye sighed deeply, and said, “I-I don’t know. I remember nothing.”
Arthur just gazed at her, waiting for the story to continue.
“I woke up one day, and I was here. No memories, only my name. The turtle you talked about, my pet, I found her down here.”
“But why you didn’t escape this place?”
“I can’t. You see these energies coming from the monuments? I think these are trapping me here for so long…”
“The only things I know from the outside world are what the turtle told me. But I wish I could see it with my own eyes.”
“Skye. What if I told you I can get you out of here?” Arthur said.
“What are you serious?” Skye got closer, grabbed both of Arthur’s arms, and said, “If you get me out of here, I promise I’ll marry you!”