Dragonfire: Celestia

Chapter 17: For Science! And Centaurs, apparently...

Kaede led Chichi-Chichi into a small, run down temple. It had a church-like design, with benches lined up on either side of the long main hall, facing a lectern at the end of the room. Both the benches and lectern were made of a lighter wood design, as was the custom of Celestial temples. There was a black rug going from end to end in the hall, though it was rather worn out. There were paintings lining the walls, each depicting a different religious figure. Strangely, some of the figures depicted were considered treasonous to Laufi. Why a temple would have flattering art of its opposition was a curious thing to ponder. Of course, these paintings were crooked, and one of them even had a stain from some kind of sauce. Even the white structure of the building was dirtied. It seemed as though this temple rarely saw any use, or perhaps too much of it, resulting in its dilapidated nature. There was a single door in the back, next to the lectern. There were two people in the temple aside from them, both standing next to the lectern. One was a male, with a black cloak covering his entire body. The other was a female. A nun, to be exact. She wore a long black dress, with a white apron. She had black boots that went up into her skirt somewhere, and had some black gloves on. She wore a white sohei cowl on her head, covering her face up to the nose. A curious cowl for a curious woman. She had lighter skin, with two different colored eyes. Her right eye was a light hazel, while her left had a glowing blue hue. Curiously, she had a birthmark, or some sort of skin defection over her left eye. Perhaps this was why she wore a concealing headpiece.

She was holding a strange, cubic object. It was gold, with runes engraved throughout. It was small enough to fit in the palm of one’s hand easily. She was handing it to the male. “Will it unlock the seal?” He asked. His voice was rather unique. It was deep, with a Canadian-like accent. The accent of Ingres, a reclusive Kingdom whose accents never faded due to their lack of interaction with the outside world. To see someone from Ingres anywhere outside of their Kingdom was rare, let alone in the middle of a shady temple. “I don’t know. It’s sealed for a reason. But if it does unlock, I would like to look at the contents within before you put them in some secret vault somewhere.” The Nun answered. Her Voice was medium pitched, with very little expression to it. All of her words were lifeless, as if they held no meaning. Both of them noticed Chichi-Chichi and Kaede. “Well, until we meet again. Good luck with your…sermons.” The Cloaked Man said. He walked off, leaving the temple in a hurry. They awkwardly approached the Nun. “Uh…hi…” Chichi-Chichi said, “Greetings. Are you here to be cleansed? Or have you simply come to pray?” The Nun asked, “We were actually wondering if you could help us.” Kaede answered, “I see. What can I help you with?” The Nun asked, “We heard you may have a certain…scientific side. And we were wondering if you could help us-” Kaede was cut off quickly, “I am afraid you are mistaken. I am a simple Nun. If you are not here for anything related to the temple, then I am afraid I cannot help you.” The Nun said. Kaede shrugged.

“Okay. I guess we’ll just…leave, then.” She said. The Nun bowed politely. “May Laufi’s wisdom guide you.” She said. She proceeded to walk over to the door, and pulled out a key. She unlocked it, and entered. As soon as the door closed, a clicking could be heard from the other side. It was locked. But why? What was there to hide in some dilapidated temple? “You thinkin’ what I’m thinkin’?” Kaede asked, “Go after that shady guy and ask him about her?” Chichi-Chichi asked, “Nah, that’s too much work. It would be easier to just break into that room of hers…” Kaede answered. She gave him no time to protest, walking right up to the door! She pulled out a lockpick, and got to work immediately! “Wait! What?! But! I…where did you learn to do that?! No, scratch that! WHY are you doing that?! We can’t just break in!” Chichi-Chichi exclaimed, “A reporter sometimes has to use unsavory methods to get the truth…” Kaede responded. A moment later, the door was unlocked! She opened it, revealing a set of stairs leading downward. “Great…a creepy basement…” Chichi-Chichi said, “Don’t be scared! I’ve got your back!” Kaede responded, “Uh-huh…and by that you mean you’re gonna be behind me, right?” Chichi-Chichi asked. Kaede nodded, ushering him to go first. He sighed, and began walking down the stairs. It led down to another door. Kaede followed him down, and they both nodded to each other before continuing. They passed through the door, and into a large room.