The Rise of the Dark Sun

Chapter II

We pushed through the glass doors of the building, ignoring the eyes of the wealthy as we strutted down the marble stairs and onto the streets. Cronus suddenly seemed to notice the dirt on his face and tried scrubbing it off, but I suspected it had less to do with the entitled Galeidians and more to do with the pretty blonde walking beside him. As we walked, she began braiding back her hair.

"So are you going to tell us what he said?" I asked.

"The African zircon," she beamed and tossed the flawless braid behind her.

I frowned, pulling my knotted hair into a bun.

"But it really is the one?" Cronus asked.

"Dr. Wolff said it has the right energy count, same as the others," she said.

"Your mom really knew what she was doing when she made those maps," Cronus said.

"Yes. Yes she did."

☀ ☀ ☀

As we reached the outer core, we dusted the remaining sand and dirt off of our clothes and became a chorus of sighs of relief. Home. Finally.

It felt as though we were finally able to have a civil conversation; to recount our journey. Had it been days? Weeks? More than that? We couldn't really remember, which meant one thing; a successful trip. We had decided months ago that we would go looking for the zircon. Ava's mother had maps which guided her predictions to the gems. So far, they all have been correct. Ava's mother believed that the African zircon was in a hidden temple in the sandy dunes of Heliotropia's outer rim. The trip to Heliotropia alone was days. Finding the gem was another story which resulted in scraped elbows, bruised knees, screaming matches between Cronus and myself, severe headaches, and, of course, the gem.

When Ava was a child, her mother had told her stories about the Mazmurox and the things they were capable of. Ava's mother believed the horrible legends of the Mazmurox, as many do, even if they are too afraid to admit it. However, Ava's mother believed another legend that others really only saw as, well, a legend.

Ava's mother believed that the Ancient World was balanced by different energies that radiated from the different lands. When the world was corrupting, these energies became trapped in different gems. When the old world became ours, the gems were lost. Ione had believed that finding these gems would rebalance our world, and rid the Mazmurox of their power.

I used to think Ione was crazy when it came to the gems. I just didn't understand it. As a child, she showed me what she had found. I just didn't quite believe it. When she died, it became extremely important to Ava to finish what she started. Of course I would support her.

Ava and Cronus were trying to keep track of the gems we had collected. I only knew of six. Overall, there were seven. If we only had one more left to find, we could finally find out the truth about the gems, and even the Mazmurox.

"We have... the diamond from Antarctica, the sapphire from North America, the aquamarine from Australia, the opal from Asia, the emerald from Europe, and the zircon from Africa. How many is that?" Cronus asked. Ava pulled her long, blonde hair out of her braid.

"I... I believe that's six." she said hesitantly. Cronus watched her then turned his head; she didn't notice him, just as she usually didn't see the way he looked at her.

"Who's left then?" he asked.

"South America," I replied.

"And which one is that?" he asked.

"The ruby," Ava said, finally getting her hair back into a tight ponytail. She turned her back towards the wind and looked around with her piercing emerald green eyes.