The Eye of The Storm - 1. Rememberance

CHAPTER 14 The girl from the cave

As we follow Magnus deeper into the grove, I notice that in some places along his path grow small bushes. June looks at them and says with disappointment:

"They're all withered. We're running out of time."

"What do you mean."

"If the flowers are fading, this means she's fading too." The daughter of Hypnos says, then her bottle green eyes expand in realization. "That's why she was trying to reach us! She was asking for our help. Eurynome is dying!"

We quicken our pace. The peonies we see more and more often are a sign that we are approaching.

"I don't understand. You said an immortal was dying? As far as I know titans were immortal..."

"It's a peculiar case." Enzo explains. "But gods do in fact die when their attribute is gone, when people cease to believe in them."

"And what about her?"

There is no answer, so I'm left to ponder why exactly is causing the titaness' death. We reach the huge mouth of a cave sinking into a mountain. The stones are covered in thick moss and twirly vines slowly are draped from the cave ceiling. The peony bushes seem to grow in the dampness of the grotto. A small underground stream can be heard chanting in the depths of the earth. Noah suggests to go in.

The air inside is humid. Eerie noises echo across the limestone walls. We trek with caution, guided by Enzo's trusty flashlight. Suddenly, we hear someone singing, a clear girl's voice singing. We freeze enchanted.

"It sounds like her!" June exclaims after a moment of silence. "It's her!"

She begins to run and we follow her through stalagmites and stalactites. This part of the cave is wet, with sharp rocks and narrow passageways. We try to walk in line where we can, but it seems we have to descend a bit deeper from here. The walls look steep.

Noah helps June descend, holding her gently by her waist. Enzo uses his crossbow as a pickaxe to hold onto the wall, then lets himself go into a shallow pit of water, possibly a stream. Magnus helps me climb down the stone wall, his gloved hand grasping mine. I try to find my way around without being distracted by his blue eyes which follow my every move to make sure I'm safe.

We continue onward as the corridors enlarge. At the end of the stone tunnel, we can see light. I doubt we are close to the surface, given the fact that we have been only going downwards. The chattering of birds could be heard. No, impossible, we couldn't be close to surface...

We reach a clearing, an underground lake shimmering in a bright light, filled to the brim with white and pink lily pads. It looks like a grove incased in stone, with trees and flowers with sweet smell. Small birds fly from branch to branch, it looks like they're playing tag. In the middle of the lake is a green island, connected to its edge. On the bridge, a young girl leans over the railing. She is wearing a pastel green dress and in her white hair, tied in a low pony tail, is a peony.

She suddenly turns to us, her eyes narrowing as if she's trying to recognize us.

"Come, heroes!" she says. "Come and join me."

* * *

The light green eyes of the girl, bright like the grass below our feet, look at us with curiosity. When meeting June's gaze, she asks amazed:

"So, it is you, the mighty heroes who've been through so much just to come here and speak to me! Ah, and just in the nick of time!"

Her childish giggles sound like chirping birds. She gestures us to follow her across the bridge while frolicking around the way. She leads us deeper and deeper into the small grove on the island. I can see that some animals are watching us with suspicion. The girl pauses and sits on the grass below and she is immediately surrounded by many multicolored flowers. She leans over a small bush of withered pink flowers and sighs. Peonies.