Beyond A Queen's Whisper

Chapter Sixteen

The sky stretched endlessly above as Vidi soared through the air, his massive wings cutting through the clouds with ease. Cassie and Ama clung tightly to his back, their eyes wide as the world rushed by beneath them. Days came and went as the terrain shifted from lush forests to rugged mountains, and eventually, to the vast expanse of a golden desert that shimmered in the midday sun.

Hours had passed in relative silence, save for the occasional beat of Vidi's wings and the wind whistling past their ears. As the sun dipped lower in the sky, casting long shadows across the sand dunes, Cassie finally spotted something on the horizon.

"There," she called out, pointing toward a small structure nestled at the edge of the desert where the sands met the ocean. It was a tiny speck in the distance, but as they drew closer, the details began to emerge.

The building was a small hut, its walls seemingly untouched by time. The wooden exterior gleamed as if it had been recently polished, and the thatched roof was perfectly intact. It stood alone, surrounded by miles of sand on one side and the endless ocean on the other, a solitary beacon in the vast wilderness.

Vidi began to descend, his powerful wings slowed in their descent until they touched down gently on the soft sand. Cassie and Ama slid off his back, their legs wobbly from the long flight. They took a moment to steady themselves before turning to examine the hut.

"This is where the heart on the map has led you," Vidi said, his deep voice resonating with a sense of purpose. "Inside, you may find what you seek. I will remain nearby, watching over you from the skies. When the time is right, I will return."

Cassie nodded, patting Vidi's side affectionately. "Thanks, Vidi. We'll be careful."

Ama stepped forward, her eyes fixed on the hut. "Let's see what's inside."

The two women approached the hut cautiously. Despite its remote location, the structure looked almost new, as if it had been waiting for them. The door creaked slightly as Ama pushed it open, revealing a modest interior. There was a small table with a couple of chairs, a few empty shelves, and a single bed with a simple blanket.

Cassie frowned, glancing around. "This can't be it. There has to be more."

Ama was about to agree when Cassie's foot caught on something, causing her to stumble forward. For a second, Ama could have sworn she had seen an iridescent hand wrapped around Cassie's ankle but shook it off. She was tired. Moving around Cassie, Ama reached out to steady herself. In doing so. she accidentally knocked over a small, decorative vase that had been sitting on one of the shelves. The vase shattered on the floor, the impact caused a section of the floor to shift slightly, revealing a hidden compartment.

"Well, that's one way to find a secret," Cassie said with a wry smile, kneeling down to inspect the compartment.

Ama knelt beside her, helping to push the wooden panel aside. Beneath it, they found a narrow staircase leading down into darkness.

"Looks like we're going underground again," Ama remarked, peering down the stairs.

Groaning, Cassie nodded, pulling out her book to check the map. The heart was still pulsing, now directly below them. "Yep, yep. Let's check out another creepy basement."

With a shared look of determination, they descended the stairs, the air growing cooler as they went deeper. When they reached the bottom, they found themselves in a vast underground library. The walls were lined with shelves upon shelves of books, some ancient and covered in dust, while others looked as though they had been placed there only recently.

With a deeper look, the two could see that the library wasn't just a storage space for books, it was a living space as well. Several doors branched off from the main chamber, leading to what appeared to be bedrooms, a kitchen, and even a small dining area. It was as if someone had designed the place to be a sanctuary for learning, a place where scholars could live and study in peace.