Axolotls (Discontinued)

Quest

  Kiply stared up at the mountains and the storm that towered above her and her dog, Hailey. She didn't know why the eye had brought her here. Where had the eye even come from? She had just found it in a chest this morning, and when she picked it up, that feeling came. That feeling of needing to search, to find something. And it didn't stop. Not when she put the eye down. Not when she tried to destroy it. It never stopped.

  Not until now.

  When Kiply had found the mountain, the feeling had stopped. It was like- well, one way to put it might have been a weight off her shoulders, but that wasn't it. It was more like losing a second consciousness, in a way. It was freeing, to not have that awful feeling anymore. It was almost insanity, that feeling, and now that she stood before the mountain it was no more. Now, there was just that call. It felt better than the other feeling. Still a controlling feeling, but softer. Lighter, in a way. 

  Human and dog slowly trudged up the many worn stairs that had been carefully added to the mountain, wary of falling off or getting hit by the lightning that was being precariously thrown around.

  It took a ling time before they reached the top, partially due to how massive the mountain was, partially because of the lightning, and partially because of Kiply's worry for Hailey's safety. When they reached the top, exhausted, they stood on a platform at jutted out of the mountain, and looked around. Kiply was amazed at what she saw. Hailey looked amazed too, but she always looked like that.

  A golden wrist cuff, with identical carved out spaces where it seemed multiple somethings should go, sat upon a stone pedestal that rested in a small dip in the platform, which had a smaller, similarly shaped hole cut into it. The same engravings on the cuff, of the same size, even, resided in the peak of the mountain, forming the shape of a diamond. Below the platform, the eye contented itself in a little hollow it fit perfectly, and strange marks were etched into the weathered mountain, which someone had translated. They read almost like a poem, detailing some sort of instructions.

Take the cuff,
And use it to free the ones
That are all but forgotten from their prisons.

Find the all but forgotten ones,
And bring them back to these lonesome hills
To free the ones that are long forgotten,
For not for long shall they lay still.

Find Flame, asleep in the Mighty Forge,
Find Sea, dormant in the Calmest Waters.
Find Grass, resting in the Greatest Forest,
Find Wind, dozing in the Tallest Skies.

The forgotten ones rest,
Asleep in their nests,
Close, yet far away.
For they are not in our world,
Nor are they of it,
And asleep they will not stay.

Stay strong and do not despair,
My friend,
For the journey ahead will be rough.
But you will have friends by your side,
And though the hardships
Will be tough,
Everything will be alright.

  Kiply wondered what it meant as the rain poured down. Ones that are forgotten, or all but that? It sounded like something straight out of a fantasy book, yet here it was, right in front of her.

  "Hailey," She whispered nervously, barely audible to her companion over the screaming storm while brushing her fingers across the inscription. "What is this?"

  Out of nowhere, they heard someone panting behind them, and turned to find Rage, holding something small.

  "Rage?" Kiply yelled over the howling winds. "What are you doing here?"

  "I could ask the same of you!" He shouted back, trying to keep his goggles on his head as he ran over.  "Seriously though, what are you doing here?"

  Kiply motioned to the eye, now firmly planted in its socket as Rage came closer to her so they didn't need to shout. "Whatever this thing is brought me here. How did you find this place?"

  The engineer held out a small, diamond shaped compass. "This led me here." He looked at the writing on the wall, and then after a moment of reading it, turned back to Kiply. "Do you know what any of this means?"

  She shook her head. "Not really. All I know is that it has something to do with the cuff, and it's probably important," She replied, motioning to the pedestal, and the shimmering item that sat atop it. All three of the beings on the mountain moved towards it, and Kiply tried to pick it up, to no avail. "Maybe you try?" She suggested.

  Rage attempted, but got even less far than Kiply. Then he noticed the small hole in the pedestal.

  "Hang on," He murmured, producing the compass. "I think I might know what to do." Placing the compass in the niche, they watched as the needle disappeared. "See if you can lift it now."

  Trying again, Kiply found she could lift it easily. It wasn't as heavy as she'd first thought, and now seemed to be as light as a normal bracelet. "So, what do we do now?" She asked. 

  "Why don't you try it on?" It was almost a question, but nobody there knew what else it might be. 

  "Um, okay then." Slipping it on her right arm, Kiply found it fit her perfectly. "Well, this just got a whole lot creepier. How did whoever made this know how to make it fit perfectly?"

  Rage seemed to search his mind before speaking. "I don't think they did." His voice was colder than before. "I remember hearing a story once, though I can't remember where or when, but it was about a smith and a jeweler, who were tasked with creating a wrist cuff for a tyrant king. But the smith was crafty, and since the jeweler had a bit of magic, they created a cuff that would fit any wearer that it deemed worthy." Today was starting to sound more and more like a story now, or maybe a dream. "I can't remember what it deemed worthy though, or even if it was true. Sorry," He said, the last two sentences in his normal voice.

  Kiply looked at Rage, though neither was sure if they made eye contact due to Kiply's blindfold. "Then I guess we'll just have to find out."

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Hello cacti! I have no clue how I wrote over 1000 words in like three or four days, so expect the next chapter to take a bit longer. Also, please note that I have no clue where I'm taking this fic, and I don't think past me expected it would turn out like this when she started it. But we're here now, and that's what matters I guess. I did have a lot of fun with this chapter though, and I had even MORE fun with the picture, since I NEVER get to draw things like this. So, yeah. Have a nice time!