Temporary

by Red Paladin

"Come like shadows, so depart."

-Three Witches, IV, i, 111, William Shakespeare, _Macbeth_.

The ruins of the ancient city had taken dust like a magnet to iron filings. Red brushed off some of it for examination. It _was_ partly iron. He sprinkled it from his finger as he hurried to follow Bryn, who had moved up ahead. The iron was mostly rust now. There had to be some water source around here, if there was rust. The two kept searching, going through the alleys of building, and the internal structures. This place was huge, yet there was no sign of life except the rare rat-like creature that crossed their path. The sounds of footsteps reached his ears, but he shook it off as his imagination. He looked around and noticed weird writing on the some signs, and took note of it.

"Would you look at this place," Bryn said. Red remained silent surveying the old, crumbling buildings. He occasionally looked down to find out what was trying to trip him. The rubble also had big pieces to it.

As they travelled farther inside, to the heart of the ghost town, things got a little better, but almost insignificantly. The incredible force that caused this destruction had no doubt come from the sea. How? Who knows, and at the moment Red could not have cared less.

Now that they were closer, they could see what might have been the palace or castle of the family that ruled this city. It was still a ways away because of the twists and turns that were necessary to navigate the former streets. If they were to find something, that would be the best place to be.

It had taken them a good hour to get there. Running had not been an option because of the debris and the lack of energy in both of them. They were almost to the point of staying conscious by force of will alone. They were certainly relieved when they past the outer gates to the inner confines of the building. Out from under the unmerciful sun, and into the cool shadows that awaited within. They were even more grateful for the fountain inside that miraculously still flowed with clean water. Red quickly filled his waterskin before dousing his face and head with the cool liquid. It was temporary relief.

Feeling quite refreshed, they finally looked at their surroundings. The capitol building's interior was enormous. Not quite Sistine Chapel high, but what was left of the ceiling was enough to make you stare in awe. Any decorations that had been, were long gone. Slight cracks in showed around a few eroded statues that surrounded the now-open dome ceiling. Near to the bottom of the dome was a encompassing gallery that now was on the verge of falling apart. Red shook his head to make sure he was not hallucinating. Water flew everywhere.

"Hey!" Bryn exclaimed.

"Sorry," Red apologized.

She responded by splashing some of the water at him.

"Now there's no need for that," Red said before returning fire, or water as the case may be. This continued for a few more splashes until Red heard footsteps. More than fully refreshed, Red knew he heard something this time.

"Wait," he said in a whisper.

Bryn was about to dip her hands in for a two-handed splash, but stopped. Red strained to listen. The muffled steps were slightly louder, and the Fire[tm] in his blood flared to enhance his sense of hearing, but the echo of the hall made it impossible to pinpoint its source. Red signalled Bryn to leave.

At first, they ran blindly around the pool. Then they finally realized they had an infinite number of dark hallways in which to enter. Bryn grabbed Red's arm as she chose one of the many ones on the left. As they entered, Red hand shot his arm out to grab one of the torches resting in a ring on the wall. He left it unlit as they raced down the hall. The hall wound its way like a snake through the building. It felt like they were running in circles. Finally they came to an intersection and three more paths lay before them. As Bryn pause to decide, Red channeled a strand of Fire and ignited the torch. The light it gave off what strange. It began green in colour before it changed to the more normal red, orange and yellow. *Huh. Probably copper (I) oxide* Red thought, from his chemistry class. That was his best science subject. Mixing herbs for different things did that to a person.

Red then felt a tug pulling him to the right. He looked to see Bryn moving down the right corridor. The light flickered as they walked down this one.

"Do you know where you're going?" Red asked.

"No clue whatsoever," came the reply.

"Excellent!" Red said, sarcastically. Nevertheless he continued to follow. The Fire[tm] burned less brightly now, but was still present. He heard noises besides Bryn's steps, and drew a dagger with his free hand. Looking back to where they came from, he saw nothing. They kept walking. "Do you know what's chasing you, at least?"

She continued walking. "I think it's someone from my past. I'll tell you the story. Just keep walking." Red listened in earnest as she told him of her encounters with a certain Lyran that has caused her troubles in the past.

The story was finished. Before continuing, they lit another torch that hung on the wall. Then they turned a corner and entered a room filled with what seemed were antiques. The room had a musty scent to it, was filled with cobwebs and was supported by several square stone pillars that encircled the room. Other than Red's torch, there was no other source of light. It reflected off the usually shiny pillar on one side. They were almost like black mirrors.

"Bryn, here," Red handed her the torch, "you hold this. Can you sense her?"

"Yes. She's close," Bryn said. Red exchanged the single dagger for several X-Cards[tm], while he examined the rest of their surroundings. It was almost like the place they had entered from, except it had a flat ceiling instead the dome-like one before. Also, the roof had survived better than the other one, though it was not as decorated. On the floor, however, there seemed to be the remnants of a coat of arms. As Red glanced down he saw that there were also faint symbols that seemed to point towards the pillar faces. On closer inspection, the pillars were actually very dark green and contained symbols of their own.

"She's getting closer," Bryn said. Red pulled his hands away from the dark pillars to get ready for an encounter. He let the Fire[tm] burn a little brighter in his veins. Bryn jumped back slightly as his eyes met her.

"Is there something wrong with your eyes? They're all cloudy."

"I can see just fine," Red's now-cold voice replied. He turned his attention on the doorway, ready for anything.

"Okaayy..." Bryn said, uncertainly. The noises from the corridor were growing louder though very slightly. All his focus when to the rectangular entrance, and everything else was blocked out. What Bryn was doing, he did not know.

Suddenly, a dark man-sized silhouette appeared. It had the look of a monster. With a flick of his wrist, Red sent the three explosive Cards[tm] spinning through the hallway.

They passed right through it, disintegrating part of the wall behind it. *What the...?* He moved closer to the hallway. Suddenly, the thing move.

"That wasn't her," Bryn said.

"What?" Red asked, perplexed. He walked to the end of the corridor and turned, looking. He saw a rat-like creature. It had been the cause of the alarm. He blew out the torch that had created it.

"Damn! There I go, chasing shadows!" He turn around, walking back into the room. "It was just some rat! I think she's messing with your mind."

"Why though?" Bryn asked.

"'Got me," Red replied. "I wasted three good Cards[tm] for nothing."

Feeling quite frustrated, Red sat down, leaning on one of the dark green pillars.

"If you find anything interesting, call..."

He was interrupted by a flash of green light from the sigils on the floor and on the pillar before he disappeared along with the flare of light.

To Be Continued in "Underground"

Neutral&Chaotic Publishing since 1997.

The preceding segment is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locals or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.