Eon

Chapter 8

Carson watched the Insurgents leave the next morning. The old Insurgent turned to look back once and nodded before following his companions into the forest. Carson sighed, stared at the ground for a while with his hands on his hips, and then set out to the quartermaster for another day's work.

After his shift was over and the day drifted to evening, Carson set out further into the forest. He decided it would be wise not to mention his extended trips to Han. Out of all the Chesons Carson had encountered so far, Han seemed the most strict when it came to the few rules that dictated the citizens of Far-Sky.

Carson gathered a few supplies and placed them in a leather, Cheson-made pack and then set out in a random direction. Again the animals called to him. He spotted a bird with an elongated beak and a yellow streak going down its forehead and a wingspan the size of Carson's extended arms. The bird cawed at the Insurgent but did not fly off. It lingered, staring at Carson with eyes that were far too intelligent for an animal. Carson watched the bird for a little while longer until eventually moving on. He could feel the bird's gaze following him as he left.

He discovered a strange cave formation at the foot of a great mountain. The cave itself seemed gray and lifeless, but on closer inspection Carson found streaks of dark-blue on the rocks just outside of the mouth of the formation. He skimmed the strange phenomenon with his palm and found it to be bumpy in texture. Carson assumed it was some sort of quartz, or perhaps something else entirely, a stone unknown to mankind. He decided to delve further.

Darkness dominated the interior of the cave. Carson felt his way through, his right hand parsing over the walls of the cave gently. He could hear a dripping sound from within. He followed the sound into the black until he came upon a small opening which he crawled through. In the back of his mind he wondered of the dangers inherited from delving so far into the cave, but some foreign stubbornness pushed him forward.

After walking on for a few more moments, Carson happened upon a great ravine leading into an underground cavern which stretched on for miles upon miles. A shaft of sunlight shone from above, allowing the usurper to look on. At the bottom of the crevice was a pool which shifted slowly, as if it was made of molasses. The unmistakable scent of oil dominated Carson's senses, making him gag. He covered his nose and mouth and peered downward, his eyes wide with fascination.

An urge to inspect the liquid more closely consumed Carson. Quietly he set his pack onto the floor of the ledge he stood on and then removed a coiled set of rope. He took the rope and tied it around a rock formation shaped like a spike and tugged on the support twice to ensure it would hold. He then tied the other end of the rope around his waist. After taking a single, deep breath, he slowly made his way over the edge and began to scale the side of the ravine. It was in this moment that Carson realized that his desire to explore was boundless.

The Insurgents gently moved downward until the wall of the ravine began to move inward and he was forced to dangle midair above the pool of strange liquids. Carson hung there for a time, his body silhouetted by the sunlight which contrasted with the black ooze beneath him. As he looked downward he witnessed a void of true emptiness that sounded through infinity, similar to the edges of space. He became faint for a moment but then composed himself and began to climb back up the rope. After making it to the top safely he gathered up the rope and his pack, turned to look at the secret cavern underneath the forest once more, and then squeezed through the small opening leading back into the winding tunnels of the cave.

Carson used his inner compass and the walls of the cave to make his way back into the open air. As he headed back towards Far-Sky, a sinking realization set within. He became subdued and silent, with a quizzical look on his face that made his eyebrows arch. If the pools of black really were oil then Carson knew Eon was doomed to subjugation. He decided then and there that he would tell no one of the cave. He could only imagine what would happen if the pool was found.