Hero: Revenge of the Gods!

Chapter 23 Unchained

"Are you finished?" Amy sighed as she looked at todo returning from the bush.
"Aye. Best poop in my life." Todo said.
"Eww." Megumi groaned.

The group had been staying by the bush for a couple of minutes, waiting for todo to get finished with his defecation. It was awkward but nonetheless a good reprieve from the constant action and suspense of the last few hours.

"Well, If we're done with todo's bowel movements then can we please move on?" Tessa exclaimed.
"Where do we go from here?" Megumi asked.
'Well the fog and the magic surrounding it is gone, We shouldn't be trapped in a fog maze now." Tessa explained.
"So if we just follow the stone marble we should get... somewhere." Tessa said, unsure.
"Well, You're right. I guess there's only one way forward." Amy agreed.

The five agreed and began to walk down the stone path. The walk was calming and serene, even though the group had saw the plants of this garden before in their never-ending walk through the fog, they still were amazed by the vegetation of this place. The lush green plants adorned the garden like ornaments. Green leaves stretched from the tops of trees and laid down on the path. A luminous scent could be smelled from flowers releasing their pollen and bushes with sharp thorns could be seen.

After walking for a bit, the path suddenly stopped. The path led into a rock formation. This rock formation was blue in color and sloped downward a bit, almost like a cave. A metallic door was in front of rocks, backing up the 'cave' idea.

"What the hell is this....? A secret liar?" Amy said while looking at the cave in awe.
"Should we go inside and check it out?" Rabia asked.
"There's nowhere else to go...." Megumi declared.
"Aye. I rather be in a cave then here. I swear if I have to see another plant, I'll throw up." Todo rolled his eyes.
"Yes. At the very least we can hide out in there until the knights stop looking for us." Tessa suggested.
"Hmm. Yeah." Amy responded.

Amy walked up to the door and light pushed on it. She expected it to be locked but to her surprise, it wasn't locked and it opened with ease.
"Well. Down the hatch, I suppose." Amy joked and laughed.
The door stood agape, some light began to peak out from the cave. It gave off a weird vibe but not one that felt unsafe. Amy shrugged and entered the cave, undeterred. The others looked at each other before heading into the cave after her.

The side of the cave was unimaginative to say the least. It looked like your standard cave. Rock walls, Stalagmites, dripping water, pretty run of the mill stuff. There was a distinct smell of incense in the cave, perhaps signaling that someone had been in for some purpose.

The group began walking deep into the cave.
"Geez, this place gives me the creeps." Amy voiced.
"Tell me about it. That incense smell is giving me horror movie vibes." Megumi said.
"Yeah, I think the thing we'd need the least right now is to be kidnapped by a cult." Amy laughed.
"How is that funny?" Rabia rolled her eyes.

Tessa stopped walking and looked up.
"What is it, tessa?" Megumi asked.
"There's some writing on the cave ceiling." Tessa said while looking upwards. There indeed was some writing on the ceiling. It was in some strange language that they couldn't understand.
"Can you read this, todo?" Tessa asked.
"Nye, It seems this is a language I'm not familiar with." Todo replied.
"Hmm....Do you know who could've written it?" Tessa asked.
"No." Todo simply replied.
"Well, I suppose either its a sign that someone has or currently is living in here." Tessa announced.
"Living in a cave. Creepy." Amy quipped.

The group then pressed onwards, hoping maybe to find some reprieve in this dark cave. Though, the darkness would not last for long as they saw a light. It dim light but one that shined distinctively in the darkness. The group headed towards this light with a hope in their heart. -But soon they would see something shocking.

"Is that a house...?" Amy asked, looking ahead.
"A house in a cave....?" Rabia said, looking befuddled.
The house was a small little thing. Barely ten meters wide and the same length vertically. It was yellow in color and had windows that appeared to be blacked out. The house also appeared to have a chimney and smokestack, which seemed to be a weird addition for being in a cave. It gave the group a creepy vibe.

"What even is this place...." Tessa mumbled.
"Oh shoot! Score!" Amy pointed downward to a spot in front of the house. There were several gardening tools on the ground, a shovel, a sickle, a wheelbarrow, a spade and shears.....
"We can use those to free ourselves!" Amy declared.

They all looked at each other with small smiles as Amy took the shears and clipped Rabia's chains first, then Todo's, then Megumi's and finally handed them to Tessa to shear off her own. A wave of relief waved over all of them as they now had their freedom back.