Nix Terra

A Boy Named Finnikin - 5

After donning their parkas and slipping on their mittens, the duo trekked through the snowy town to a remote corner of the underground cavern. The air was still cold, but as the ceiling sloped down away from the magical ceiling and the river, the snowfall dwindled.

Lavender narrowed her eyes, adjusting automatically to the increasing darkness. The farther they went away from the skylight and the town-lights, the darker it became. "Are you sure there's an exit this way?" A terrible thought crossed Lavender's mind, some dark notion that Finnikin brought her out into the darkness to hurt her. That was irrational, he would never hurt a fly and she had her massive scythe with her. It was evident who would win in a fight if his intentions were corrupt.

"Yes, Lavender, I promise." Finnikin pulled Lavender by her hand into a dark crevice in the wall and began edging along through it. The crack was just wide enough to fit Finnikin's grizzly bear frame, so Lavender was able to squeeze through easily. The ground sloped upward in the small cave and Lavender could feel the gradual pressure lightening in her ears.

"Almost there," Finnikin said, voice echoing in the dark, seemingly endless tunnel.

Lavender still had her doubts, but sure enough there was light at the end of the tunnel. The whites, golds, and blues of the light and the sky bounced off the cave walls. Finnikin climbed out of the crack above their heads and then offered Lavender an arm up. She grabbed on, muscles taut, and pulled herself up. "Thank you, Finn..." She trailed off, looking out at the sky and the trees around them. It was such a simple sight, but she had been deprived of it her whole life. Doomed to live under the ground thanks to the humans.

"It's a little overwhelming at first," Finnikin said. "Oh, uh, Lavender you should probably leave your scythe here. The humans won't take kindly to you having a weapon in their park."

"Humans?" Lavender tensed up, then glanced at her weapon. It was rather large. How she'd gotten it through that tunnel was a mystery. She made the smart decision and took it off, setting it in the crack they'd climbed out of as not to draw attention to herself. "I guess we had better blend in then."

Finnikin nodded and dragged a branch over the crack where the scythe was hidden so the light wouldn't reflect off of it. "Alright, you're going to love this. Come on."

The two walked along through the woods, the sound of roaring water grew closer with every step. As they broke through the trees, Lavender's eyes widened at the sight. "Are these the falls?" She gaped at the water and all the people and the skies, everything was a wonder to her.

"Yeah, the snow in Nixta is thanks to this river and these waterfalls, along with a little Thaumaturgy magic to keep the water from cascading into the city," Finnikin looped his arm around Lavender and guided her toward the crowds of people.

"Tell me more..." Lavender said slowly, her curiosity piqued.

"When Nixta was first dug out of the caverns, they accidentally dug too high, right into the river, the entire ceiling collapsed and water flooded the caverns... but some thaumaturgists - like the ones from my family - had this idea to freeze the water. They used their combined power to seal off the entire ceiling with ice, then pyromancers came through and evaporated any water that was still at the bottom of the caverns. A lot of it is still down in the ground."

They reached the railing by the waterfall and looked out over it. "Nixta has an amazing story..." Lavender sighed, "I guess I really didn't give your home enough credit. I'm sorry, Finn."

He smiled, "It's alright."

"No, it's not. Your home is unique and beautiful and I just didn't see it."

Finnikin laughed, "It is kind of cold, though. And it's not where you want to be, helping your nation in Bellum."

"But I am helping my nation... From here in Nixta. No way in hell my superiors would have let me go to the surface if I were in Bellum. At least here I can conduct my research, and now I have access to the aboveground. Plus you're here. Nixta isn't that bad." She let a small laugh escape, then looked up at Finnikin, whose cheeks were flushing in a peachy tone.

"You really mean that, Lavender?"

"Mhm..."

Finnikin beamed and looked out at the water.

"Excuse me?" A gravely voice behind them said.

Lavender turned her head, face full of disdain at the sight of a human. "Yes?"

The human's voice was quiet, almost a scared whisper, completely contrary to his physical appearance. "I heard you talking about Nixta, thaumaturgists, and pyromancers. Are you from the United Mage Republic? You have to help me."

Lavender's face contorted, her disdain replaced by surprise and confusion. "Excuse me?"

"Please." He hissed, dreads falling into his face. "The Agents of D.C. are after me."

Lavender stiffened at the mention of the D.C.s. "Come with us." She peeled herself from the railing and began walking briskly back to the woods where her scythe was hidden in the crevice.

Finnikin and the human trailed behind Lavender until they reached the trees, at which point she stopped in the clearing to look at the human. "Who are you and how do you know about the mages?"

"My name is Corey Gesly and I worked for the Agents of D.C.," Corey paused, seeing the look of utter disgust on Lavender's face. "But I left. They plan on killing people, killing mages... I didn't want to be a part of that."

"Then why did you join the D.C.s?" Lavender asked venomously.

"Lineage. My parents fed me ideals of a world where humans are safe from mages, but after all my research, I've discovered that you aren't threats- you're just normal people trying to live your lives. And yet- The Agents want to bomb the hell out of you. I refused to be a part of that and now... They're after me."

"You know the plans of the D.C.s?" Lavender asked.

"Yes!" Corey breathed, "But please you can't let them find me-they'll kill me, I'm sure of it."

Lavender gritted her teeth, unsure of if she should trust this human or not. They could be lying, they could still be a D.C. who was perhaps trying to find a way into the Below.

Finnikin chimed, "We'll protect you. Lavender is a necromancer soldier, top of her class, if she can't keep you safe then nobody can."

"That's what I'm worried about," Corey muttered. Then more vocally, he pronounced, "I can tell you everything once we get somewhere safe."

Lavender glanced back at the branch covering her scythe and the pathway to Nixta, "I know just the place."

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