Into the Ruins (II)
You find yourself sealed off from the others together with Sophie and Elizabeth. Sophie panics, shouting while she slaps her hands against the metal wall that now separates the corridors. It does not budge in any way, of course. Meanwhile, Elizabeth is on the ground, groaning and clutching her ankle. She seems to have sprained her ankle when she fell.
You approach Elizabeth, causing her to draw back slightly. “Wh-what do you want?” she asks suspiciously.
Without answering her, you rummage around your pack and bring out a small jar. Within is a salve you’ve made during your alchemy practice. You wouldn’t call it particularly efficacious, but it should soothe her pain enough to walk. You set it on the ground in front of her and say, “Medicine for your feet.”
“Medicine? Oh, that’s right. You were loitering around Mr. MacDonald, were you not?” Elizabeth takes the jar, opens the lid, and sniffs at it. Her brows crease in a frown. “Smells bad.”
“It’ll work.”
“I shall hold you responsible if it does not.”
Elizabeth cautiously dips a finger into the jar and begins rubbing the salve over her pale ankle. Meanwhile, Sophie gets tired of calling for help, and walks wearily towards the both of you. “What shall we do now? We are stranded.”
“Should we wait for help?” asks Elizabeth.
“I wonder…” Sophie ponders. “But… if this is the other entrance, then there should be a way out, right?”
“Through the main entrance, you mean?”
“That’s right, Elizabeth. The entrances should be connected.”
Sophie seems slightly pleased with herself, but Elizabeth isn’t so sure. “What if they are only connected through one of the other corridors?” she asks.
“Oh, do not be such a wet blanket!” cries Sophie, frowning.
“We don’t have any other choice.” Elizabeth gets to her feet, before turning to you. “Oh my, that salve is quite soothing. Thank you very much!”
Her smile is bright and you look away, mumbling a brief “You’re welcome.” You don’t get a lot of heartfelt thanks from girls your age, seeing as the only girl your age around is just Sophie most of the time.
Sophie lets out an irritated sigh. “Can we move on already?”
“Sure,” you say. “I’ll lead.”
“Are you sure? I would be in for quite the lecture with Father if anything happens to you,” remarks Sophie with all the gravitas of an older sister.
You do not answer her; you only begin walking. The girls follow behind you.
***
The metal corridor is smooth and quiet. You examine the walls as you go, marvelling at how seamless it is, and how the blue light seems to float just beneath the metal’s surface. How were these ruins constructed? You cannot think of any building at all wrought by the hands of Man. Could the preachings be right? Were these ruins actually created by God?
Behind you, the girls are quiet. It seems that without Andrew around, Elizabeth has little to say to Sophie. The silence is uncomfortable and awkward, but you ignore it, choosing to focus on the path ahead. You keep your eyes and ears alert for the presence of any other beings.
“Hey, Wrinkly,” Elizabeth speaks up suddenly. “So, what exactly transpired between you and the baby? Are the stories true?”
“What stories?” you ask. You know that there were stories circulating around about how you came across Rain, but you had not bothered to pay too much attention to them, preferring to focus on your studies. But perhaps this is a good time to find out.
“Well, according to Scotty, you were a thrall to a cruel vampire, and that baby was a child you stole as an offering to your dark and terrible master. But the villagers discovered your master’s lair and set fire to it. That’s how you got your burns.”
It is a very creative story, you have to admit. “That’s not true.” You deny the story. “I picked up Rain in the woods.”
“Oh, so no vampires were involved?” presses Elizabeth.
“Do vampires actually exist?” you ask.
“Of course not,” says Sophie, uneasy with the topic. “God would not permit such things. They are just superstitious folk tales to scare the uneducated.”
“Hm?” Elizabeth seems to have found some sort of weakness, and her green eyes flash with pleasure. “Oh my, could it be that dear Sophie here is…”
“I am not anything you are thinking of, and I am sure you are thinking of some very rude things!” insists Sophie hotly.
“If you say so,” smiles Elizabeth. “By the way, have you heard of this story from John and Jane? It is about the lights in these ruins. You remember learning about Christopher Columbus, right? And how he and his men mysteriously disappeared?”
“Y-Yeah, so what of it?” Sophie gives Elizabeth a challenging response.
“Well, it is said that they died exploring the Tower… and their ghosts were trapped in its ruins.” Elizabeth’s smile widens, and she lowers her voice to a silent whisper. “And that the light under the walls… that is what they are even now. Screaming silently… calling for new souls to join them… see, right there, in the wall behind you!”
Sophie shrieks and latches on to you. You hadn’t known that girls were this soft before. You freeze up, not knowing what to do. Elizabeth just laughs, clutching her stomach. “Oh, this is precious, dear Sophie. You are such a scaredy-cat!”
“That was not funny!” complains Sophie. Realizing that she is clinging onto your arm, with your scarred face in close proximity to hers, she shrieks again from the sight and pushes you away. It takes her a second to look slightly ashamed and apologize in a low mutter. “I’m… sorry.”
You shake your head. “No problem. Let’s go.” Your heart is thumping, perhaps from the excitement of all the screaming, but you let none of your turmoil show on your face. Instead, you caution the girls to be quieter. “It might not be a good idea to make so much noise.”
“Well… I guess you’re right,” says Elizabeth primly, giving Sophie another mischievous glance. “I will try not to laugh that loud next time.”
“There won’t be a next time,” hisses Sophie under her breath.
“Anyway, if it’s not vampires,” says Elizabeth, more quietly than before, though no less irreverent. “How did you get your burns?”
“Elizabeth, that is not a polite question to ask,” Sophie says, exasperatedly.
“I was not asking you, Sophie.”
“There was a fire. My house burnt down.” Your response is simple and short.
“Oh, I am sorry to hear that,” says Elizabeth. “You know, I have heard that the cities have doctors that can do wonders with burns. Why don’t you go and get your scars healed?”
“You talk like it is easy to go to the city,” snorts Sophie.
“Well,
my father has been to many cities,” grins Elizabeth, and she begins to brag about how well-travelled her merchant father is. Their quiet bickering fills your ears as you proceed… but strangely, you don’t find it uncomfortable.
***
The air grows colder as you venture deeper into the ruins. The corridor branches off at places, but you decide to follow the main trunk for now, hoping that this would have the greatest chance of leading you to the exit.
“Nothing at all indeed. I suppose Scotty was right about what he heard from his father, there is no danger at all,” says Elizabeth. She sounds a bit disappointed that this trip has been nothing but walking through dim hallways, though she had also wisely refrained from laying her hands on anything ever since that first time.
“It is better that way,” Sophie says. “We do not need you touching anything else and getting us all in trouble.”
Suddenly, you sense that something is different ahead. A subtle change in the sound that your footsteps made. You stop, and the girls behind you do too.
“What’s wrong?” Elizabeth peers over your shoulder, slightly too close for your comfort.
“I think… this corridor ends ahead,” you say slowly. And as you take a few more steps forward, allowing the wall lights to shine on a door. It is metal, just like the walls around it. You hesitate for just a moment before walking towards the door and placing your hand on it. A panel glows green.
“Hey!” shouts Sophie.
“Is the ceiling going to fall again?” Elizabeth darts her eyes upwards and around.
But all that happens is the door sliding open. You sniff the air – no signs of anything out of the ordinary. No beastly smells, no stench of blood. It should be safe… probably.
“That was rather reckless,” lectures Sophie. “What if another trap had triggered?”
“And here I thought I was careless…” mutters Elizabeth.
“Nothing to worry about, I knew it would be fine.” You pause for a while, and then add, “Probably.”
“Probably?”
“Oh, bother… what a boy.”
The girls sigh in unison, but they follow you into the room anyway.
The room remains dark, unlike the hallways. Your lantern has found a use, and with a slight sense of satisfaction, you bring it out. The orange glow uncovers the sights the room has to offer; thankfully no previously hidden horrors come to light.
The room is round and not much larger than the classroom at school. Large metal blocks line it at regular intervals, circling the center of the room. There stands an ornate a dais, upon which a crystal ball rests. Catching the light of your lantern, the crystal ball’s core sparkles brilliantly with the colours of the rainbow.
“Hey, over here!” whispers Elizabeth suddenly. “We found something!”
You go over to the girls, who are looking at the base of one of the blocks. Three compartments have opened up in the blocks, revealing a trio of items.
“Could these be… Astras?” Sophie says quietly, making no move to take them. “Is it safe to take them?”
“Don’t be such a coward, explorers find and claim these things all the time. So, three of them, one for the each of us?” suggests Elizabeth.
You look at the items – there is a book, a pair of boots, and a pair of eye-glasses. None of them seem to look particularly impressive compared to the sword that Andrew had.
***
Concerning the potential Astras, you decide to:
A. Choose the book.
B. Choose the boots.
C. Choose the eye-glasses.
D. Let the girls choose first; you will take whatever is left over.
***
The moment you finish dividing up the loot, you hear the sound of footsteps outside the door – more than one person is approaching the room. You quickly make the decision to:
A. Wait and see who it is, keeping your lantern lit. It could be the other children, or it could be the knights. Either way, there is no real reason to hide.
B. Put out your lantern and hide behind one of the large metal blocks. Better to be cautious here when it comes to potential strangers.