The Seven Relics of Magicians

A Day On Dangerous Tracks

We quickly left the village, taking the Black Road to head out to the fort the map pointed out to. Such fort was not so far from here, and child be reached in a day of travel. I had never heard of it, not have I saw it in any other maps, so it was confusing as for how that fort was only marked on a map so recently.

"Do you think it will be a trap?" Astaire asked, as he paced himself to follow me.

"Yes" Began Samwell. "Yes, I think it will be a trap."

Both of them kept walking silently as the forest started to get darker.

"Ah, the mysteries of the Black Road." Samwell told himself. "I still wonder why people just don't cut down these trees. They just give trouble to travelers."

I nodded, without stopping. This road was home to dangerous creatures and to various bandit clans.

Eventually, some time after, night fell. Obviously, we needed shelter, and the trees were not even close to having dry sticks, so we had no were to go. After walking for a while more.

Eventually, we found a cave. It surely was not the best idea to enter it, but so we did, as a place to sleep.

We found a dry place, and slept in the very ground, not minding to search for anything inside the cave, since it was completely silent.

I left my bow aside me, laid down, and quickly fell asleep. I was used to doing this sort of stuff whenever I would get lost in the woods.

*+*+*+*+*+*

I woke up to the sound of something being dragged around the cave. Instinctively, I picked up my bow and my quiver, slowly getting up as I strapped the quiver to my back.

Picking an arrow of it, I readied my bow's shot.

I finally jumped up, scanning my surroundings carefully.

Nothing was to be seen

Soon enough, I decided to check on there place where Samwell and Astaire were sleeping. When I arrived, I see Samwell... But only Samwell.

I didn't think twice before darting off to the cave's main chamber, where the noise was to be heard. My arrow stood ready, as I prepared to shoot.

When I arrived, I saw something that looked like two hands dragging Astaire, who was still asleep, amazingly, into a beam of light. As Astaire was finally into the portal like thing, I took the shot.

A cry of pain was heard coming from the portal as it closed.

I started to nearly turn the place around in search of something that could lead me to whatever took Astaire away from here. Leaving no stone unturned, something struck me as odd. In the center of the room, a particular oddity was found under a boulder.

A small stone of circular form was there. Weird inscriptions had been carved onto it. As I examined the inscriptions, I recalled that I had seen those signs somewhere else. I had read about them, but I did not remember exactly what. All I knew is that those markings represent a key of sorts, something like that.

I kept looking, hoping to find something actually useful. And all I found were more and more songs like these, but I found four more, all were semicircles and they fit like a puzzle. I figured that the one I had found in the center of the room was the one missing in the center. I joined them together, and a beam of light exactly like the one I previously witnessed started to come out of it.

The beam expanded into a portal, which I decided to enter with no qualms.

Once I entered, I was in a damp room, which had only a cage in the center and a tunnel to the left.

That was all I could see, of course. The light of the portal lit only half of the room, the rest was pure darkness. Once again, i readied my arrow, and I started to take a close look around the room.

Under my left foot, I noticed a trail of blood started, going past the gate and to the darkness.

I started to follow our, stopping at the side of the cage, where I examined it.

It could barely fit Astaire, so it was impossible for him to have ever been there. I continued within the darkness, each minute more tense.

That is when something stepped out of the shadows and leapt onto me.

I kicked the tiger like creature away, backing out and shooting at it. The shot hit a vital organ, as the creature fell dead on its tracks.

I walked past it and saw a light at the end of the cave. I was amazed by the sight of what was there...