Standing to the left among their group, Bran Ai looked at the amazonian girls petrified by the gold to his right.
The golden light had faded with only a few small streaks remaining, as the light left it returned the area to a relative gloom making it difficult to see.
"Hey you think they are ok?" The boy named Jacob that had talked to Bran Ai earlier had gotten closer to him.
Both had introduced themselves yet hadn't the time to say much other then their names when the elder chastised them for not practicing.
"I don't know, they aren't moving" the golden statues had become completely still preserving every fine detail of the bodies.
From the way they squinted their eyes, to the way they lifted their arms to block the light, to those that tried to jump out of the way trying to avoid the light only to end up sideways in the water, it was uncanny.
Bran Ai and the boy took notice of the actions of the remaining amazonians, they wondered why they seemed so tense.
Why didn't they check in their friends? Those to the left, that came from the west bank had, so why didn't they?
"You think they're dead?" The Jacob asked.
"No, they don't seem to be" Bran Ai tensed up a little after saying this.
The boy noticing this slight change looked at the golden statues again.
At first he couldn't really see anything, was Bran Ai just making something up to scare him? He wouldn't appreciate such a thing if he was.
The statue then suddenly groaned.
From the head slight cracking noises started to reach his ears as the bone structure of the face started being rearranged.
A muffled gutteral scream sounded out.
As the girls collar bones snapped away from their position Bran Ai and the boy backed away in fear.
"Run!"
Bran Ai not seeing where he was going collided with someone else standing behind him, the other child looking in a different direction had instinctively used his elbow to push Bran Ai away.
Off balance Bran Ai fell sideways swallowing some water as his eyes closed shut from the sudden change.
Splashing loudly in an attempt to reorient himself Bran Ai lost his sense of direction for a second before his foot gripped the invisible barrier firmly enough for him to put weight onto his legs in order to stand up.
The commotion attracted the attention of those nearby and distracted them from the screaming statues.
This distraction accompanied by the noise, obscured the cracking sound coming from the golden statues.
No one wanted to look in the direction of the deforming statues, the screams alone was enough to make one look away.
In a matter of seconds the golden statues standing up dropped to the floor as the bones and muscles holding their shape ripped and broke apart.
When the children turned to see the new source of splashing water they noted that the golden statues were gone.
Hidden under the nearly waist deep water the bodies off all those covered in gold changed.
Screams that sounded distant entered the ears of everyone inside the lake.
Himenez watched as the two boys that had accompanied him broke into pieces before his eyes.
Sounds like a that of a bull or hog being gutted alive shook him to the core.
In a panic he ran away from the lakes center, being the furthest away from the center the water was much easier to move against.
Even so the water still reached his shin's forcing him to lift his feet higher in order to avoid being slowed by the water as much as possible.
These large movements caused enough noise to obscure the screams coming from below the water.
The onlookers outside the lake looked on in horror.
"Wha-What is happening!!?"
"This was not mentioned by the texts"
"I thought you said that the ritual was finished? Why are they- They...!" The eastern group of old men stood wishing to enter the lake.
Elder Qez sighed.
'In the end it was just this'
He had thought that the children had already failed, much to his relief the opposite was true.
'If these people weren't here would the test have been deemed a failure or success? I guess the children are a little lucky after all' a bit of glee pierced throught the elders worried face.
With none of the children being turned to gold he knew the answer.
'Just one. I just need one to survive, It doesn't need to be one of the children either'
Bran Ai picked himself up, the waters weight slowing his ascent to the surface delayed him for a second.
Clearing the water from his eyes he looked back to where the girl in gold once was.
'She's gone! Where did she go!?' he scanned the water not fully picking himself up staying half hidden below.
From below bubbles started to rise like the breath had left someone's body.
It didn't last long as the air left the lungs of those encased in gold, their last breaths taken in agony.
Of the twenty-five amazonian girls that entered, seventeen turned to gold leaving only eight remaining, these eight then formed into two groups of four that separated from each other and moved back without turning away from the last location of the golden statues.
"Focus, wait until they rise from the waters"
The boys to the east under the lead of Nand had nine remaining among their group, with twenty-one turning into holden statues.
"Get closer, prepare for whatever is coming" Nand had chosen to stand his ground, only backing away far enough for everyone remaining in his group to gather.
The boys terrified by the sight of their companions crumbling before their eyes rushed to his side forming a circle.
The group to the west having watched as their friends were squished held back their tears.
The girl among the group named Huitaca held the dagger in her hands firmly.
Only twelve remaining among her group they fared the best out of everyone outside of Bran Ai's group, losing only eight people.
"Back away, hurry they are about to wake up!" Huitaca pleaded from some too shocked to move.
Even if they had known that this was a possible outcome for all of them, it still hurt to lose someone dear to them.
Dragging some of the boys away from the scene she took charge of the group as she lead them towards shallow water.
Himenez had ran all the way back to the outer edge of the lakes shore, he wanted to get out of here as soon as possible unwilling to stay a second longer.
Just as his foot was about to make landfall on land an invisible wall blocked his way, he crashed with enough momentum that his nose broke spilling blood on the water.
The other spaniards having seen what had happened to all the children backed away not willing to go near.
"Its the devils den!"
"We must leave! We cannot stay in this godforsaken place!"
"Leave him, he is a dead man"
As Himenez was filled with adrenaline at this very moment, he did not pay attention to his broken nose and instantly started to slam his muskets butt to the invisible barrier.
"Help! Help me! Get me out of here!" He pleaded to his companions.
He turned his rifle, this time using the beyonet itself to stab the invisible wall in hopes it would work.
With not even a spark to signify the breaking of this invisible wall he aimed his musket and fired.
Bran Ai's group was sanwiched between the southern and wastern groups, not knowing how to act in this situation they froze.
As both groups to the side left they were left alone nesr the center of the lake.
Some looked at each other, others at the place where the statues once stood and a few looked in elder Qez's direction seeking guidance.
The children had all formed into several smaller groups among the fifty, Bran Ai had joined a group of eighteen othwrs that split from the rest to get a little closer to the center as he wanted to see what was going on initially.
"Are theu ok?"
"Where are they?"
Now as he had seen the girl covered in gold fall apart before his eyes he wanted to back away immediately yet he didn't want to back away alone.
One of the braver kids neared the location of one of the statues, he wasn't close enough as all the groups had at least ten to fifteen feet in-between them initially, their group being shorter then the rest had stayed twenty feet away from the center.
The closet group of statues was the amazonians, being only 12 feet infront of them and slightly to the east it would be easier to traverse the shallower water.
The brave child ventured into waist high water as he took a look down, unable to clearly see the outcome of the golden statue due to the shifting water he lowered his head into the water.
His curiosity outweighing his survival instinct he lifted his feet floating closer by the moment.
One of the amazonians noticed this and looked to her companions unsure if she should try and warn the child or simply leave him to his fate.
A few others in Bran Ai's group felt curious and decided they also wanted to take a look getting closer to what used to be the amazonian girl.
'I chose the wrong group, why are we getting closer?' Bran Ai complained internally.
"Back away!" One of the amazonian girls screamed.
The children unable to understand her simply continued to move forward.
Looking under the water the child that arrived first wished to fill his curiosity, using his feet to probe the body covered in gold down below.
The low light covering the area made it difficult to distinguish the features of the gold statue with the water obscuring it's true form.
'Why isn't she getting up? Can she breath underwater? Should I try? Can I hold my breath long enough?'
Not thinking that the person down below was dead as he had no concept of the word, he neared closer to check on the girl.
"Back away! Fools go back now! Listen to me!" The amazonian girl screamed at them to retreat making some of them stop walking questioning what she was screaming about.
Distracted once more they failed to see what happened next.
The eyes of the golden statue opened, a cat like eye replacing what was once that of a human.
Taken aback by the sudden action of the girl under the water, the child observing her stopped his actions.
With no time to react the boy was dragged under the water.
One moment it was silent, the next the boys legs pierced the water while his entire torso was hidden below the water.
Splashing around for a while as the boy flailed his legs around, the water turned slightly darker.
The kids further away that had seen this had their hairs stand all over their bodies.
Being the closest to the scene but distracted Bran Ai's group failed to see what had happened, it was too sudden.
Water rippled in their direction, unable to react quick enough one by one they were dragged under the water.
Bran Ai was not far from the center of this group, he saw the first child disappear but knew not what happened so when the rest disappeared into the water one by one his body tensed.
Next thing he knew he was under the water again as something bit his legs dragging him around in the water.
He tried to pull his leg up away but was unable to as a struggle under the water began.