Obscure

Chapter 1, Act 2.

Treasure Hunting: The Journey

The journey is never easy but if the reward sustains the survival of a kind, the line gets drawn and the risk must be taken.

After getting out of the tunnel, Val scoured the area before letting Taherah step forward, cautious of any danger ahead. Since he is more experienced than her, he takes the lead in missions if Nikolai or other leaders aren’t around. He is their equal but he respected them enough to let them take charge. Or maybe he was conscious of his age.

The passage led out to the rear of the High Hexen shrine, or what is left of it. The tales told it passed as a sacred sanctuary of the Golden Hexens until it was corrupted by Anekha- one of the high-ranking hex. The corruption led to the destruction of the temple and the people in it, and now all that is left of their legacy is these broken walls and fallen domes.

Even in the dark, the silhouette of the crumbled dome stood high, hovering above their heads. One wouldn’t need a door to enter or exit this place as there is barely anything left standing. From many of the walls, only the foundation is what remained and the last of the pillars are what kept the dome still afloat. If even a rock were to be removed from the sculpture, all of it would come crashing down.

The ruins still reflected the magnificence of this sanctuary and Vlarian always wondered how it would have looked in its full glory. It almost looked like a fallen fort but its beauty of love and sorrow, of light and darkness, and all that once welled up inside the life of a palace. Moonlight basked on it and even with all the dust and dirt it was wearing, it still shone the lightest twinkle, leaving the people wandering there in anticipation.

The people left with a bit of sanity would never roam around in such places at this hour of the moon, knowing quite well what haunts these domes or perhaps, these were just tales told by drunk bards in taverns.

Overwhelmed by the fear of the dark, Taherah shuddered, clutching her cape around a little tighter, hugging her form as if to mimic a protection spell. She scooted a little closer to Val, still maintaining a good amount of distance to veil her distress and not get made fun of later on as Val wasn’t someone who would let her get off the plank easily. Right now, he was busy navigating his surroundings and by the rhythm of his breath, he appeared nervous.

Was he going to accept that he was nervous? No. Or who would act like the tough one and strike the evil right in their arse? Vlarian! He lifted his chest high as he thought about carrying it whole on his shoulders and didn’t let his bravado falter for even a second.

Taherah on the other hand, wasn’t fond of putting up a brave face when there was one in the duo to do it but she wouldn’t also scream in the void to tell the ghosts how scared she was of this mission and the constant nudging inside her chest which appeared as soon as they stepped out of their home.

While making their way across the debris and God knows what, a glint of light caught Taherah’s eyes, close to the fountain. She immediately closed her eyes as though not visible to Val, it sure blinded her for a second there. Not looking back, he hissed lightly, “Come on! We don’t have that much time on our hands to stand aimlessly.”

“I am not standing aimlessly. I saw something there.” Taherah pointed towards the fountain, the reflecting light still sparkling strong but unsurprisingly, Val chose to ignore her temptations and moved away. She wouldn’t move away like him. She wasn’t a scavenger but she wouldn’t miss an opportunity to retrieve something useful and then, perhaps, exchange it for another book. Another book of Earthians and their unbelievable tales.

“Now is not the time,” Vlarian uttered, continuing his steps and when Taherah considered joining him for a minute there, she still couldn’t resist having a look at whatever treasure was waiting for her in the fountain. A book, she thought. A whole new book, she thought about the idea of having enough to pass the time in those unbearable winters and that was enough to falter her step.