Morning came far too soon for Rion's liking. His body still ached from the day before, and he wasn't looking forward to what Ezra had called the "hard part" of the journey.
They couldn't stop now, however. If anything they had to make haste, there was still a village in need of saving after all... A thin stream of yellowish liquid splashed against a rock before tapering off. Rion pulled back up his pants and fastened his belt.
He readied himself to head back over to Ezra and Maria but paused, noticing something strewn over a rock, billowing in the wind. It looked like a coarse material of some sort, with clumps of brown hair- or fur spotted along it. A cloth maybe?
Rion narrowed his eyes, trying to get a better look when Ezra called out to him.
"You take care of business?"
Rion turned back and gave Ezra a quick nod. "Oh yeah, sorry, I just saw something—" He went to point toward the material, but in that moment a strong gust of wind lifted it from the rock and sent it floating down the mountain, out of sight.
"Ah- nevermind..." With that Rion hurried over towards where Ezra and Maria were waiting.
His gaze turned to Maria who was clutching her shoulders tight, shivering slightly.
"You alright Maria?" Rion asked.
Maria nodded, "I'm just cold is all."
"You want my coat now?"
Maria chuckled, "Nah I'll be fine."
"Don't worry" Ezra said. "It'll get a lot warmer once we're in the cave..." He grinned. "A lot more dangerous too, but ignore that part for now."
Rion and Maria gave him a blank stare... they had been trying to ignore that very thought all morning.
"Alright, last stretch. Let's go!" Ezra cheered as he cut ahead, same as usual. Rion and Maria followed, the cave swallowing them whole.
----
It wasn't completely dark inside, but it was dim enough to demand caution, so Ezra stepped aside and let Rion take the lead. Rion nodded and cast a small ball of fire, holding it in front of the party with Control. The orange-red light illuminated the cave walls, revealing cracked stone riddled with crevices from which little critters peeked out. Bats clung to the ceiling in clusters, while small stones and bones littered the ground, dry as ash.
Ezra had been right. The farther they went, the air shifted from chilly to warm, almost humid. Rion began to sweat, so he removed his coat, tying it around his waist. He wondered why it was getting so hot in the first place. Maybe from hidden maga within the stone?
Without any guesses Rion redirected his full attention back to the fireball before him, keeping it steady throughout the rest of the cave. Eventually the cave emptied out into a vast cavern. The light of the fireball stretched outwards along the space showing off its interior. Pillars of gray stone, still pools of clear water, and winding paths of stone going in every which way and direction you could imagine. Far above them, the ceiling stretched up into the darkness.
Ezra stepped past Rion, giving him a reassuring pat on the shoulder. "I'll lead from here."
Rion nodded and followed.
Ezra led them along a narrow path etched along the cavern wall. It led down, and they descended carefully until reaching the floor below. Then they continued on until stopping once the path split at two separate caves.
"You see the gash in the stone beside the cave on the right." Ezra said.
Rion inched the fireball closer and squinted, sure enough There it was—a clean cut in the rock, roughly seven inches long.
"Leads the way huh?" Rion muttered.
Ezra nodded. "Yup. This is the popular route for crossing these mountains. People mark the way. Alright, let's keep moving."
And keep moving they did. The cave continued on for a while before eventually opening into a smaller chamber. Its moss-covered ceiling hung low, illuminating the room with a soft green glow. To their right, a small stream gently flowed into a rocky crevice, likely spilling out as a waterfall on the other side.
The air had a nice smell to it in here, rich and fresh. As they walked their footsteps splashed softly against the damp floor. It was then Maria spoke up. "Not trying to jinx it, but… where are all the monsters? I haven't gotten to play Marie once in here."
Ezra glanced back at Maria and actually nodded, "I was just thinking the same thing."
"You wanna fight too?" Rion said with a sigh.
"Not that, it's just... strange, by now we should've been attacked multiple times already but-." Ezra trailed off as they came across the corpse of a creature laying limp in the shallow stream. It was unrecognizable. Large chunks had been torn out of it, deep bite marks marking the flesh.
Ezra swallowed, "We need to stay on guard... There's something out there..."
----
At the far end of the chamber was another cave, this one far wider than the rest. Partway through, they settled down, the larger passage allowing them to build a campfire without choking on smoke. Figuring it must be night outside by now, they all got ready to sleep.
"Let's take turns keeping watch. I'll go first," Ezra said.
Maria and Rion both agreed, resting their heads. As Rion drifted off to sleep, he watched Ezra, whose red eyes were fierce and unblinking, fixed on the darkness.
(And thus, Lost Keep's adventure continues…)