In the dead of the night, a small group of men ventured into the mountains on a mission. Anyone seeing them would have mistaken them for madmen, judging by their painted faces, torn clothing, and bare feet. Each of them carried a small earthenware pot in both hands. Their leader dashed back and forth, waving a horse tail whisk and humming a strange tune. His followers trudged being him, careful not to disturb him. It wasn't too long until they were in the mountain caves. Their leader, the high priest of the Brotherhood of the Crimson Cross, High Priest Gyekye, stopped suddenly and hit his whisk against the cave wall.
"Yes, this is the place. This is definitely the place." He motioned to the pots the men were carrying. "Quickly, start painting the seals. We don't have much time."
The first of them put his hand in the pot and sniffed it.
"Ugh, that is vile. High Priest, what is in this?"
"It's a special concoction I made myself. If I told you what was in it you wouldn't be able to eat for days. Now, be quick about it." The high priest pointed to the walls.
The group painted the symbols he had forced them to memorise on every visible surface they could find. When the priest was satisfied with their work, he led them out of the cave. Once outside, the group rolled a boulder into the cave entrance.
"Seal it up tightly. Make sure there's no space anywhere." High Priest Gyekye waved his whisk around, the tiny bells attached to them ringing along.
"And remember to paint the seals around the entrance too."
"Is all this really necessary, High Priest? There was nothing in the cave when we entered." One of the group, Manu, asked, wiping sweat from his face.
"Are you calling me mad? Are you challenging the gods? Do you have a death wish?" The high priest hopped on one foot, waving the whisk around and pointing at the one who dared to question him.
"No, High Priest! I am truly sorry. Please, pardon my ignorance." Manu's voice cracked with fear and he raised his hands to protect himself from whatever the priest was about to unleash on him. The others pulled him away just in time to see a white flame shoot out of his whisk and hit the boulder.
"That should do it. They're all sealed in. Now, back to the village." The priest headed back to the village, humming his strange tune.
"You should be more careful around the high priest. He's not called 'The Mad Priest' for nothing." Another member of the group advised the shaken questioner. He simply nodded and followed them back to the village.
A fortnight passed and Manu, still searching for answers, tossed and turned on his mat. What exactly was the priest trying to hide in the cave that demanded a ritual and seals? Why was everyone forbidden from going near the caves? Why had the high priest hidden the sealing scroll from the members of the brotherhood? These and many other thoughts swirled through his mind as he wrestled for sleep with his mat.
At the cock's crow, Manu exited his hut. His face showed signs of someone who had struggled to have a peaceful rest, and his heart was set on one mission: he was going to find the truth behind the sealing of the caves.
Another fortnight passed and Manu was once again at the entrance to the caves. His planning and patience had paid off and he was in possession of the sealing scroll. The moon shone brightly as he unravelled it.
"Tie me, na tie biem
Wo nyame rekasa
Bu nkotodwe, bie kwan no
Wo nyame akasa"
"Listen to me and listen again
Your god is speaking
Bow down, show the way
Your god has spoken"
The words leapt from the scroll and glowed brightly in the air. A bright flash of light blinded him. When his vision cleared, the boulder was still stuck in the cave entrance and the words of the spell were back on the scroll.
"No. No, no, no, no. Why isn't it working?!" He was exasperated after trying for hours with the same result. He had tried it with various vocal tones, stances, and conjurings but none of them worked. The moon was halfway across the sky when he gave up and hid the scroll in a crevice, determined to return the next night.
Manu dedicated the next year of his life attaining knowledge and power in order to break the seal and uncover the secrets within the cave until a complicated ritual cost him his life.
The night before he left this plane, he stood in front of the cave and swore to never leave this earthly domain until he had uncovered the secrets in that cave.
Inside the cave, the sound of whispers could be heard as they rose and fell like ocean waves.
"Release us. We must find honour!"
"No honour."
"Honour means nothing!"
"Release us."
***************
Hey guys! So I'm here with my first book and I'm so excited to share it with you. Of course, since it's my first time writing anything like this, I got some help from a friend. I'm open to criticisms as long as they're constructive, share your thoughts, I'm very curious to know what you think of my work. And please don't forget to vote and leave your comments, they're really important to me. Thank You!☺
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Call Of The Void
General Fiction"According to ancient folklore, centuries before Sunken Deeps became the hospitable little town it is known to be, it was the hosting ground for the War of Cedrose that happened between the Yurian people and the British army: one side fighting for d...
