Stolen Scales

Chapter 50

Kyma steps to the edge of the cave and uses her powers to part the waterfall for a brief moment so she can see through it. She looks down at the fall to the distant sea below and pales in apprehension.

"Lyss, It's very unlikely that I'll ever dive off of this. That is a very long drop."

Lyss nods with disappointment, but doesn't push the matter. Instead, she pulls Kyma's mind away from the drop and towards something else.
"Are you ready to explore the cave?"

Kyma's eyes light up in excitement that she can barely contain inside herself. "Of course!"

Alai stifles a giggle. "Come on then!"

She slides off of her rock and bounces towards the far wall of the cave, her bare feet slapping lightly against the stone. Kyma follows her into the dark depths of the cave, anxious with excitement and nervousness. As Kyma approaches the darkness by the wall, her hands stretched out before her to feel her way through the darkness, she expects her fingers to touch the smooth stone of the back wall. She does, in fact feel the stone, but something feels off about it, making her fingers tingle slightly.

The wall is positioned at a slant, as if there was more of it. Kyma stops hesitantly, unwilling to continue on without eyesight, for even though her eyes have adjusted to the darkness, she still sees nothing. Alai's voice comes from in front of her, indicating that she was moving at Kyma's pace, letting Kyma grow comfortable with the area.

"Are you alright, Kyma?"

Kyma nods and responds, her voice slightly shaky with emerging apprehension. "It's just really dark back here, and I'm uncomfortable with not being able to see."

"Just feel along the wall a little bit farther, alright? I have a light just around the bend."

Kyma frowns at that. What bend is Alai talking about? Nevertheless, she continues to carefully feel her way along the wall, barely feeling the imperceptible shift in the stone that leads her deeper into the cave as the wall curves. She follows the wall for an agonizingly long period of time until she feels the air open up, telling her that she has entered a larger space. She calls out from her place beside the wall.

"Alai? Do I stop here?"

"Yes."

There is a slight rustling noise from in front of Kyma and a soft blue light reveals itself. The light is the same one emitted by the algae lanterns in the houses, but why would there be an algae lantern built into the cave? It's not a house. Besides, the light isn't along the wall in a strip like most of the lanterns. It could have been a portable lantern, but why would there be one here? The light grows lighter as more of it is revealed, until the room is bathed in the light. Finally, Kyma can see its source.

There is a stone lantern in the chamber, but it isn't like the one in the houses. This lantern looks like the portable lanterns if they were fixed to the stone floor. Not only that, but this lantern is one of several, all situated around a pool of water. When she looks closer, Kyma realizes that the water is milky, unlike any water she has ever seen. She steps toward it, drawn by her curiosity, but Lyss pulls her back.

"You can't enter the water, Kyma."

Kyma frowns in confusion, the water looks so invited, more so than any water she has ever seen, even when the days were beyond boiling temperatures. "Why can't I go in?"

"That's the healing pool, Kyma."

"Okay . . ."

"Someone is only allowed to enter the pool if they are severely injured."

"Why can you only go in when you're injured?"
Lyss gives her a grin smile. "In healthy bodies, the water can reverse the healing." Kyma gives her a look of confusion. "If you go in the water and you aren't injured, the pool can kill you."

Kyma's eyes widen. "Okay, that's a bit creepy." She inches away from the pool, only for her attention to be caught by something else. "Lyss, what is that?"

There are drawings on the stone wall, similar to the ones that ancient people used to draw in caves. She looks back at Lyss for a split second to see her smiling. "That's our history."

"All of it?"

"It goes back to the very beginning. Not just of the Western Merrow Kingdom, but all the way to the first merrow herself."

"What does it say?"

Lyss' smile has grown into a beam. "This room is full of magic, the entire cave is. Farther back is where we mine the larimar for the pendants."

Kyma is momentarily distracted by that. "Only the pendants?"

"Yes, the larimar for the tokens comes from the mainland when our land bound merrows go there to trade."

Kyma nods and returns to the subject of the paintings. "How do I read the history?"

Lyss leads her around the pool and over to a spot on the wall where the stone is pale and silvery with hints of blue, right where the paintings begin. "If you press your pendant to this spot, the history will show itself in your mind."

Kyma has a burning desire to do so, but she forces that thought to wait, choosing to ask more questions first. "Why does it do that if it's just paint on the wall?"

"The paint places a spot for a memory, and the pendants are a key to see it."

Kyma frowns. "Why does the paint hold memories?"

"There is powdered larimar stone inside it, it holds many properties, but only as long as it comes from inside this island. Go look, Kyma. It's your right to do so."

At last, Kyma places her larimar pendant against the wall.
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What memories do you think Kyma will see? What do you think about the healing pool or what has been revealed about the larimar? Do you have any questions or suggestions for me? Please tell me your thoughts!

Happy reading, and I'll see you next chapter!

~Goddess of Fate, signing out.