Echoes of lost civilisations [sequel]

10

TW/CW: amputated body parts

By the passing cycles I feel like I'm slowly becoming mad. I keep hallucinating weird green figures and my hunger keeps growing and growing. I look at Owen who is leading the way. I know they're just "hallucinations" but they seem so real and the fact the green looks exactly the same shade as Owen's green makes me so paranoid.

I decide to shrug it off like every other time but I feel like I shouldn't.

We slowly get closer to the iterator superstructure which looks like it's surrounded by an abandoned city. A very large gate nearly the height of the superstructure itself stands farther in the distance from it. I groan in annoyance as the distance we still must travel is rather unpleasant. I look at the pearl in my hand. My reflection shines back at me through it. I look back up at Owen who's still marching proudly.

I roll my eyes and he turns around and pouts. "Hey why are you always so grumpy, Lev?" He asks, folding his arms over his chest and raising an eyebrow. He looks so dumb when he does that face it's funny. But right as I was gonna laugh I realised he called me LEV?! LEV???

"Argghh don't call me that either!" I snap.
But me simply getting angrier makes him grin widely with amusement. "Lev, Lev, Lev!" He chants with a smirk and it makes me furious but I simply ignore him and continue to walk. He dances around while walking by my side singing some stupid song about that stupid nickname.

"Lev Lev Lev Lev uh uh yeah yeah ooooh lev-" "-can you PLEASE shut the hell up. please."
"Why'd you say please twice?" He asks and continues his dumb dance. I grunt and try my best to ignore him.

__________

A few cycles have passed and it's absolutely nothing but climbing and going up stairs and endless walking. I groan and look down at my chest. There's a big scar that looks like the ones on Monk's head on my chest. We make it up another staircase and there's a ridiculously long pole that leads to what it looks like to the top of the building. Hunter looks at me with a "seriously?" Look as I sit down on the floor and flop flatly on my back which I definitely won't do again because I just hit my head on the hard floor. Nightcat who was holding my hand, starts running around the room miraculously energetic.

Maggie then hops off of Hunter's shoulders and starts running around with Nightcat. Hunter sits next to me and watches them both run around and climb on a popcorn plant.
They giggle and laugh as they slide off the popcorn plant. "Lemme see that" hunter says, extending his hand for my spear. "Sure. Whatever." I reply, handing him the spear as he sits up and stabs the popcorn plant the kids were playing on.

"Hey!" Maggie exclaims and pouts. Nightcat pats her head as in to tell her it's not a big deal. "Gotta eat to keep them muscles strong." Hunter says, flexing his totally existent muscles. I chuckle and scoff "not seein' any, tough guy."

Hunter snickers and rolls his eyes. He turns around and eats some of the popped popcorn. He picks one off and tosses it at me, hitting me perfectly between the eyes.
I stand up and eat the one Hunter threw at me and I walk over to the plant, nudging Hunter with my elbow. We all eat and begin climbing again. Nightcat is beginning to get too big for my shoulders so she climbs on her own. Maggie climbs on my shoulders instead.

We make it up just in time as the ground begins to rumble from rain. But when I look outside the window at the dark sky as it begins to rain but snow as well beneath us. We're right above the clouds and I stare at the view of the night sky. I can't remember the last time I've seen daylight. What happened?

I turn back around and see Hunter climbing in a shelter next to a pipe. Right as I'm about to climb in after him I notice another room where the walkway is hidden behind veins. I walk alone towards the doorway and find a large room. Lanterns are stuck on large crooked poles, enlightening a large throne for two people. What the hell?

I walk over and investigate when I smell something horribly... HORRIBLY rotten.

I take one of the lanterns from the poles and look around... I wish I didn't.

A large shrine hangs on the wall across from the throne. Unlit and rotting lanterns sit around a green tail which looks like it belonged to a Slugpup but that is also rotting as well... "No way..." I whisper, my eyes widening in horror and disturbance. I turn my head to the doorway and see Hunter with the same expression as me. Maggie holds his hand and begins to whine. He slowly turns to Maggie and puts two and two together.

"Is this... yours, Maggie?" I ask, the hand holding the lantern trembling slightly. She nods.

"Some kind of cult shit?" Hunter asks with a large tone of anger in his voice.
"What did they do to you?" He asks Maggie.

I take a closer look at the tail and notice the flesh is a bright yellow, almost a goldish colour... I think I'm beginning to understand why Maggie is so scarred and missing body parts.