I charged towards Bailey, momentarily forgetting a cardinal rule of adventuring—traps! How could I be so dense? It’s practically a trope in every novel!

Bailey scrambled to his feet. “I’m fine…”

“Are you sure?!” I checked him over for injuries, my hands fluttering across his limbs.

“I’m alright, I’m alright! Remember, I build traps for a living. These little things are nothing!” Bailey puffed out his chest, a wide grin spreading across his face.

The arrows, embedded deep in the stone walls, were a testament to their force. Yet, miraculously, neither Bailey nor his bag had suffered a scratch. These arrows could pierce stone, but bounced right off them.

“What’s your bag and clothes made of?” I asked, genuinely curious. They looked like ordinary leather.

“Now this is something special!” He patted his bag proudly. “They say this stuff’s tougher than nails, stronger than any iron you’ve ever seen. Woven from some kind of critter’s silk, they say. And I’ll be, they weren’t exaggerating!”

“I reckon there’s a certain way things are meant to go on each table. Certain items, certain weights, I’d wager,” Bailey mused, beginning his search.

I dusted off a nearby table. Each one, I noticed, had a subtle but distinct indentation.

We circled the hall, scanning for ritualistic items or anything of use. We came up empty. Had everything been removed when the place was abandoned?

“Maybe we should just leave,” I suggested, disheartened. “Whatever’s underneath probably isn’t that important. It might even be empty.”

“Might be nothing inside, might be something interesting. We won’t know until we have a peek. I’m dying to see what’s underneath. A bit of adventure never hurt nobody, right?” Bailey chuckled.

Turning my thoughts to the mechanism, I asked Bailey, “Do you know anything special about the Mesoselenians? Anything symbolic or ritualistic?”

“Nothing too specific, really. They used Adamantine for their rituals, and they were big on… well, purity,” Bailey replied.

n idea sparked. I rummaged in my bag, pulling out one of the adamantine bars and placing it on the altar. It slotted perfectly into the indentation. The altar slowly sank a fraction.

Did Dr. Keyser know about this place?

I marked the altar’s descent and placed stones on it until it reached the same depth. Then, I moved to the next altar and repeated the process. One by one, they sank. Finally, we reached the last one. I told Bailey to wait outside, just in case there were any more nasty surprises lurking.

As the last altar clicked into place, the hall rumbled, and dust rained down from the walls. The massive statue began to descend, revealing a spiral staircase in the newly formed hole.

These people really had a thing for digging…

I called Bailey back in. “Anything amiss down there?”

Bailey pointed his device near the entrance. The alarm remained silent. “Should be alright… for me, at least,” he replied.

We descended the stairs. It was unbelievably clean down here. I took a deep breath. The air even smelled pleasantly sweet.

I stopped Bailey. “Doesn’t this seem a little… suspicious? This place is way too pristine for somewhere abandoned for possibly thousands of years.”

"Aye, we're all good here. I'm tougher than I look! Let's not waste any time, shall we?" Bailey said enthusiastically.

“There might be traps,” I said, a little worried.

"Don't you fret, I'll look after myself. Regular traps ain't no bother to me. Poison gas, though...that's a different kettle of fish. I'll keep this little beauty handy." Bailey said, holding up the device.

Sssss… Sssssss

A flash of gold zipped across our feet. I instantly stepped on it.

We both knelt down. A small, gold, slug-like creature wiggled and screeched under my boot.

“Any idea what this is?” I asked, holding the squirming creature out to Bailey.

“Well, I’ll be! Never seen anything quite like it. This place is crawling with all sorts of oddities…” Bailey crouched down for a closer look. “Now, there’s something familiar about this one. Reminds me of a Geodyte, the kind you find in the mines. But these are far too small. Even the young’uns are about an arm’s length. And the color… they’re usually a greenish-blue, like copper left out in the rain.”

“Ewww,” the image of an arm-sized slug flashed through my mind.

“Are they dangerous? I think there must be a lot more of these,” I asked Bailey.

“Geodytes are dangerous because of how big they get—some of ‘em can grow as big as a small house. They ain’t venomous, though, so this little fella’s nothing to worry about.” Bailey continued his examination.

Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

“Size of a small house?” A shiver ran down my spine.

Suddenly, the small creature glowed, and a ball of blue lightning erupted from its body. I quickly cupped it in my hands. Lightning sparked out, followed by a puff of smoke, then… nothing.

For the first time, I felt a tingling sensation in my palms. Carefully, I opened my hands. The lifeless creature lay there, its color turned dark brown, as if it had been overcooked.

“And that?” I looked at Bailey.

“That… that’s magic!” Bailey stared, eyes wide. “Creatures don’t… they don’t use magic. Ever.”

“You mean that’s magic? As in, real magic?” I was thoroughly confused. “I thought you said the Annunaki were the only ones who could use real magic.”

“This… this is like Mesoselenian magic. That was… lightning magic. There are other kinds, but… that… that shouldn’t be…” Bailey shook his head, bewildered.

“We should really be extra careful here then… if these things can use magic…” I warned him.

We continued down, encountering many more of the small creatures. When we finally reached the bottom, a tunneling passage became visible.

“I guess that’s the way we’re going then,” I muttered.

We walked deeper into the secret passage until we reached the end. A massive door blocked our path. Bailey and I pushed with all our might, but it wouldn’t budge.

I worried about more traps.

This was the point in a novel where life-threatening danger would usually appear.

“Bailey, back up as far as you can without losing sight of me,” I instructed.

I examined the door. There was a slot-like space on its surface. And wouldn’t you know it, it was the same shape as one of my adamantine bars. I inserted the bar into the slot, and the entire door lit up and swung open. I quickly retrieved the bar and tucked it back into my bag.

My precious…

Sssss…ssss…Sssss

As the door creaked open, a swarm of tiny gold slugs scurried across the floor, disappearing into every nook and cranny in the walls.

I held up Bailey’s device. The alarm remained stubbornly silent. Peering inside, I saw nothing out of the ordinary—so far. I waved Bailey over.

“Ready?” I asked.

“Aye,” Bailey replied, hefting the gun.

We cautiously stepped through the doorway. Another grand hall stretched before us. Torches lined the walls. Bailey snatched one and lit it.

In the flickering light, the hall’s walls came to life with beautiful paintings. Bailey and I began lighting all the torches.

When we finished, the magnificent artwork stood revealed in all its former glory.

We carefully examined the paintings. They depicted an ancient tale from eons past.

The land was fertile, fields overflowing with crops. The sun shone brightly. The tiefling-like people lived in harmony, farming, hunting, fishing, and mining.

Until one night, a giant red moon appeared in the sky.

“This planet didn’t always have two moons?!” I exclaimed, turning to Bailey.

“Not that I know of… never heard tell of such a thing,” Bailey replied.

The massive new red moon shone down, and then came the floods. Massive waves of water washed over the land. Everything was swept away. The daily flooding came and went, again and again.

The ancient tribes fled to the mountaintops. One group found a large cavern high on a mountain, extending deep inside. With nowhere else to go, they ventured into the depths.

They struggled daily in the darkness, many perished, and they made terrible sacrifices. But fortune finally smiled upon them. They discovered a massive deposit of adamantine in the cavern.

Using their knowledge of magic and the adamantine, they not only survived underground but thrived. They rebuilt their city below the surface. This temple was built in honor of their deity, whom they believed had granted them this chance of survival.

“So… how long ago do you think this was?” I asked, glancing from the wall painting to Bailey.

“Uh… there’s absolutely nothin’ about this in any of our histories. Not a word,” Bailey explained.

He elaborated, telling me that humans had over ten thousand years of recorded history. The Mesoselenians, on the other hand, hadn’t developed writing until relatively recently. All their knowledge and history was passed down through stories. But nothing resembling these paintings existed in any of them.

“Do you have anything to record all this? Like a camera?” I asked.

“Cam…era? Hmm… never heard of such a thing. Though this contraption does take pictures, and… well, it records what it sees,” Bailey replied, holding out his device.

“…That works…” I muttered. It was basically a smartphone…

We continued exploring the hall. It seemed to have once been used for rituals, but there wasn’t much left.

“That’s odd. Did they really clear everything out?” I asked Bailey.

He glanced at his device again, then pointed at a wall at the end of the hall. “There’s fresh air comin’ from that wall… I wonder where it’s leadin’?”

We walked over. I tapped my knuckles on it; it sounded hollow. Bailey reflexively grabbed my arms.

“Don’t worry, I won’t break the place,” I reassured him. He gave an awkward chuckle and released me.

My gaze snapped back to a painting on the wall. "Bailey, stand back," I instructed, reaching out to touch the artwork. The painted red moon felt… loose. As if it could be rotated.

I turned it slowly, a distinct click echoing through the vast hall.

Suddenly, three wickedly sharp spears shot from the wall. They still couldn’t pierce my body. Impressive, but still no match for my… resilience. I glanced back at Bailey, who gave me a reassuring thumbs-up.

Next, my attention landed on the depiction of an adamantine bar. This one seemed designed to be pressed. I obliged, a couple of times, another click confirming the action.

The air above me shimmered, then erupted in a torrent of flames. These weren't ordinary flames, though. A genuine warmth spread through me—a sensation I hadn't felt in… well, since I got this body.

Then, as quickly as it began, the inferno vanished, leaving behind the distinct absence of my clothing.

Indestructible body, yes. Indestructible wardrobe, not so much... I need to get whatever Bailey’s wearing.

My gaze swept over the painting again, searching for any other interactive elements. Nope, nothing. Despite the satisfying clicks I’d managed to elicit from the artwork, the far wall remained stubbornly, almost mockingly, in place.

A low groan escaped my lips. These traps, these ridiculously over-engineered mechanisms… utterly useless. It was almost insulting.

The clicks weren’t a sign of progress, then, but… what? An activation signal? Had I somehow managed to activate the trap on myself? Where did I go wrong?