Kearne pulled a disintegrating animal skin away from the spot that Felix stood near, to discover that it covered a large sized hole in the dirt floor. The group stood around the hole. It seemed that the darkness absorbed the light from Demona’s flame.
Felix whistled and looked downward at the black hole below. “I’m glad I didn’t take another step.”
“Any ideas what is down there, Aero?” Ileana asked.
No, Aero said. Father Jandro’s final directions ended when we crested Bretthirg. It would seem that this is where we will need to part. I will stand guard here, until your return.
“The rest of you can stay here. Kearne will go with me,” Demona said.
Felix crossed his arms. “You are not going down there alone…with him.”
“Aero and I will be fine here. We can look after each other. Just be careful,” Ileana said.
They discovered a small wooden ladder leaning up against the far side of the room. The ladder was not as sturdy as it might have once been, but there was no other way for them to descend. Felix lowered the ladder down into the hole, which stopped with the last rung protruding upward against the opening. It provided just enough support and a grip to begin their climb.
Kearne broke the leg of a wooden chair and pulled some scraps of linen from a rotting cot. He wrapped the cloth around one end of the stick and tied it off. Demona watched as Kearne took what appeared to be a broken oil lamp and poured a few remaining drops of oil onto the material.
“Let’s go,” Kearne said.
Demona was the first to descend the ladder and lit up the tunnel below after she had reached the bottom. She looked around as the light bounced off of the walls of a narrow tunnel. She waited until Kearne joined her and held the flame up to his torch, until the cloth caught fire. Demona dismissed her flame when Felix reached solid ground. Ileana lowered Felix’s pack first and then Demona’s. They adjusted the packs on their backs to make them more comfortable. Then, Demona glanced back up the hole to see Ileana’s barely visible face in the darkness above.
“Be careful!” Ileana said.
Demona waved up to her. “You too. We’ll be back soon! I hope.” Demona led the group down the passage and produced a ball of flames to light their way.
Felix walked behind her and Kearne followed in the rear with his torch. They walked through a downward sloping tunnel. Their shoes kicked up the long settled dust, which caused Felix to sneeze. The walls seemed to press in on all sides and left only enough room for them to squeeze themselves straight through the tunnel.
The only thing ahead of them was darkness and more darkness, until Demona stepped forward to find herself on the end of a drop off at the mouth of a large cavern. A set of steps had been chiseled out of stone that descended to the floor below. Demona led the way to the right sticking close to the cavern walls, which also seemed to have been carved into a perfectly domed shape. The light ran in front of her with each step she took as she followed the walls.
“This is a tomb,” Kearne said. He took his torch and walked to the center of the cavern. “It’s the Tomb of Beginning.” He tilted his torch into another basin altar in the center of the room. The basin burst with flame that lit most of the tomb.
“Wow, that’s a lot of gold,” Felix said as he looked down at two large objects.
The flaming basin stood at the foot of two smooth, gold sarcophagi placed side by side. Demona held her light over the top of them to get a better look. There were more detailed carvings etched on the cover stone. She noticed at the head that the likeness of a woman was carved into one and a man on the other.
“Who are they?” Demona asked.
“The first man and woman on earth, the first mortals,” Kearne said. “The sacred texts say that the first man and woman were buried in Dissium, but I never thought it was true. I always thought it was just a story.” He leaned over them admiringly to get a closer look.
“I wonder if this is just another thing that Fotos guards? I wonder why he would leave it,” Demona said.
“Don’t be so sure that he has. Remember Aero said we would be tested. This tomb has to be tens of thousands of years old. I mean think about how old that is. It’s amazing,” Kearne said. He was clearly in awe of what his eyes were seeing.
“It is truly magnificent, to be standing in the resting place of the mother and father of all beings on earth,” Felix said.
“I guess I will need a history lesson at some point,” Demona replied. “Do you think the artifact is inside?”
“No, we will not disturb the mother and father’s resting place. Look elsewhere,” Kearne replied.
While Felix and Kearne marveled at the sarcophagi, Demona took the opportunity to get a better look at the remainder of the cavern. She finished walking around the perimeter of the chamber, until she came upon something new.
“Treasure,” Demona said. She stared down at a large wooden chest filled to the top with more beautiful items.
Felix and Kearne’s heads both popped up at the word. “What,” they said simultaneously.
“There’s treasure, here.”
They both walked towards Demona. The three of them stared down at an old wooden chest filled with roughly cut precious stones and chunks of precious metals. Demona noticed that there were many diamonds, gold, silver, and even some pearls. It was none of those often sought after items that caught Demona’s eyes. What she noticed was the bronze item that seemed out of place in the chest.
Demona reached for the item and gripped her hand around the cool brown metal. She flipped it over in the palm of her hand to examine it better. The object was old and looked to have been carefully crafted. It was a rounded triangular shape with a silver overlay that created a beautiful and precise design.
“What’s that?” Felix asked.
“I think-I think it might be the artifact,” Demona replied.
Felix and Kearne stared at the object in Demona’s hand.
“I’m not sure what the design is, but it looks like the one that the sunlight shone on in the first structure we found,” Demona said.
“How do we know that it’s the artifact for sure?” Felix asked.
“I don’t know,” Demona replied. She continued to flip it over and examine every angle of the surface, as if there would be some sign to tell her it was what she had been seeking.
“There is no way to know for certain, unless we take it…Then, we will know if it is the artifact.”
Kearne grabbed the object out of Demona’s hands and ran for the passageway.
Chapter 17:
Aleph’s Message
From the center of the cavern a bright light began to shine. The whole chamber illuminated as it grew brighter by the moment. Demona looked away and shielded her eyes with her hands. Then, the light dissipated and she pulled her hand from her face. Demona caught sight of Felix and Kearne mimicking her actions as the light disappeared.
Kearne stood just in front of the entrance to the passage that would lead him aboveground. As he unshielded his eyes he looked at the opening just feet ahead of him. He walked up to it, to the source of the bright light and found a magical force field blocking his route. Kearne cursed and turned around to look at Demona and Felix.
“You ass!” Demona started to walk towards him.
“No, no.” Kearne held his hands up in defense as Demona stormed toward him. “I just wanted to see if it really was the artifact…look at what happened.”
“How do you know? You could have just triggered some kind of trap by trying to take whatever that thing is,” Felix replied.
Kearne pointed to the center of the chamber. “Why not ask the archangel if it is the artifact?”
Demona and Felix spun to see what Kearne referred to. In the center of the chamber stood a muscular man in his natural form. He stood so still that Demona wondered if he really was a man and not an ancient Greek statue. The man looked as if he had been etched from stone, each muscle protruded and curved in an almost
perfect shape. He wore no clothing, but carried a large bronze shield in front of him in one hand. In the other he held a sharply pointed staff made of iron and wood that contained a glowing white orb in the center.
Demona shivered at the sight of the statuesque man. Neither Felix nor Kearne made any indication that they planned to move, but stared ahead and waited for the unmoving being to do something. Nothing happened for a few moments and Demona began to wonder what she should do. She stepped forward and the man began to move.
“I am Fotos!”
His voice boomed through the cavern and rang in Demona’s ears. She instinctively cupped her hands over her ears to protect them from harm. Her eyes never left the being standing in front of her. Despite her focus, Demona’s mind screamed for the booming sound to end.
“You enter the Chamber of Beginning for reasons each your own,” Fotos said. “Each desires the Artifact of Dissium…”
The archangel seemed to hover over the ground and glide towards them. Demona backed away as he drew near and found herself up against the wall. Fotos hovered higher, until he was face to face with Kearne on the ledge above. Then, he lowered himself in front of Felix and next to Demona. Demona stiffened with the being’s close proximity. Every fiber of her being told her not to do anything that might seem threatening.
Fotos hovered in front of her and stared into her eyes. Another chill ran through Demona’s body as she looked at him and waited for him to draw away from her.
“Each also desires something other than the artifact.” Fotos backed away to hover near the center of the chamber once again.
Demona did not know what to do next, but she stepped forward slowly, never taking her eyes off of the angel. “F-Fotos, my name is Demona B-Brenan.” She stretched her arm out and extended her open hand for him to shake.
Fotos did not take her hand. “I am aware of who you are. I am the guardian of this tomb and the objects within. Aleph has placed me here to make certain that no items are removed without his approval.”
Felix took one knee and looked to the ground. “Servant of Aleph, please hear me. We come in search of the artifact only because many lives are at stake.”
“We know why you are here,” Fotos replied.
“We?” Demona asked.
“Aleph is always present,” Fotos replied.
Demona looked around the chamber as if waiting to see another being appear out of thin air. She looked above her, to her sides, and even glanced over her shoulders to make sure nothing was going to pop out of the walls. Nothing happened, so she returned her attention to Fotos. She stretched out her other hand that held the object she had found. “Fotos, can you please tell us…is this is the artifact?”
“It is,” he replied.
Demona smiled. Well, at least that’s confirmed now.
“Will you and Aleph grant us permission to take the artifact?” Felix asked.
“Aleph requires something from each in return for this favor,” Fotos replied. “He has sent a message for each of thee. A decision only you can make. Each of the three—dark, neutral, and light—must make the decision for themselves.”
That’s convenient.
“What is the message, what decision?” Kearne looked concerned.
“Each message contains two options based on your heart’s desires. Each option presents a positive and a negative. You must sacrifice something of yourself in order to receive the artifact.” Fotos pointed his staff’s point in Kearne’s direction. “It cannot be understood unless it is seen.”
Kearne’s body crumbled to the ground. Demona and Felix ran to his side. Demona almost reached out and touched him, but withdrew her hands. She was afraid to touch his seemingly lifeless form for fear of hurting him. She also had her own wellbeing to think of, whether or not Kearne was unconscious, his poison was still active.
Demona jumped towards Fotos. “What did you do to him?” she yelled.
“The neutral one is well. He now receives Aleph’s message, who awaits a decision.”
Kearne’s eyes fluttered as if in a deep sleep. His body twitched like a person in the middle of a horrific nightmare. Demona saw that a grimace appeared on his face. She felt powerless in that moment and it drove her crazy that there was nothing she could do but watch and wait.
“How long will he be like this?” Felix asked.
“Until the decision is made and then it will be another’s turn,” Fotos replied. Then, he disappeared with a flash of light.
“Hey! Where did he go?” Demona said. She looked around expecting to find him standing in another location, but he was nowhere to be seen.
“Somehow, I don’t think he’ll be gone forever,” Felix replied. He walked over to embrace Demona. “No matter what this sacrifice is, we both know that there are people counting on us. We can’t think about ourselves now. We have to think about everyone that is at risk, while Abd al-Malik runs rampant. Our friends and family are in danger.”
Felix’s arms were wrapped over Demona’s shoulders and Demona’s arms were wrapped around his back. They held each other close and tight. Each hoped that the sacrifice they would make would not cost them their love. They clung to one another for comfort and in fear of the unknown.
“Aleph has a reason for everything he is doing. There is a reason he is giving us a choice,” Felix whispered in her ear. “We must have faith in him.”
“I never really believed in him, until now. I mean I knew with everything going on with the supernatural stuff that something greater had to be at work, but I never really cared. Even back at GLC, I felt something when I was there and during my interactions with everyone. Here in Dissium, there is no denying that something more powerful exists. I just can’t accept that he would do all of these horrible things to me and others.”
“You must have faith. We can’t know the answers to why things happen. Will you pray with me, while we wait for our turn?” Felix asked.
They glanced at Kearne who still lay on the ground in the awkward position he had landed in. His fingers twitched, his eyelids moved rapidly, and his lips mouthed silent words.
“It doesn’t look like he’s having an easy time making a decision to whatever Aleph has proposed,” Felix said. “Please, pray with me or at least meditate beside me, while I pray.”
“I’ll meditate,” Demona replied.
Demona sat on the ground and crossed her legs. Her knee was butt up against Felix’s knee as he sat in the same position by her side. Felix grabbed Demona’s hand and intertwined his fingers with hers. Then, he closed his eyes. Demona watched him for a second as a solemn expression appeared on his face. She readjusted her fingers and gripped Felix’s hand even tighter before closing her own eye lids.
I can’t do this. What if he asks me to give up something I can’t give up? Demona’s mind was quiet, almost void of thought. The stress of upcoming decision had almost made her numb with fear. Demona tried to come up with some solution of how she could get herself and Felix out of this situation. Nothing came to her, at least nothing that would have ended with them walking from the tomb with the artifact in hand.
I don’t really understand you, you know. I’m not even sure I want to be talking to you or how to talk to you. Molony told me to open my heart to you when I didn’t trust anyone. Right now, I don’t trust you. So, if you’re listening…I’m not sure how we are going to make this work. I need that artifact!
Demona was not sure if what she had thought counted as a prayer, but she did not have much of an option at that point. She was not sure if she wanted Felix to know that she had spoken to Aleph. That is, if he had been listening to her at all. The whole situation made Demona anxious and uncertain. What if we don’t make the right choice? What if he won’t let us have the artifact? What will happen if we don’t get to leave with it in our hand?
Kearne sucked in a huge gulp of breath and sat upright. He coughed as he choked on the air. Kearne climbed to his feet. He staggered to the cave wall and placed his hands on the
stone, bent his head down, and took deep breaths.
Demona and Felix were on their feet and making their way to Kearne, when Fotos reappeared in a brilliant flash of light. Demona and Felix spun around to look at him.
“Neutral has made its sacrifice. Light is next.” Fotos pointed his staff at Felix.
Felix began to fall to the ground, but Demona caught him before he too crumpled to the floor. She collapsed under his weight and carefully laid him the rest of the way onto the ground. She placed him in a comfortable position and checked to make sure he was still breathing. She saw the flash of light when Fotos disappeared again, but did not bother to lift her eyes from Felix.
It reminded her of the day she found him laying on the old warehouse floor. She studied every curve of his face and brushed the messy brown hair away from his eyes. She watched as an expression of sadness formed on his face; his brows creased and he frowned. Demona wished she knew what was happening.
The Artifact of Dissium (Demona Book 2) Page 16