"So we're stuck here, with no food and water except for what's left in our pouches?" Palm yelled at me.

"Relax Palm, we all knew this could happen."

"To be free from one prison only to be stranded in another." Toucan sighed and he sat there defeated.

"If you saw Wren then we got out of this Toucan, why so glum?" I ask.

"You said it yourself, not all the visions are right." He snorts back.

"Now you're listening to me, when it's convenient, I see-"

"Cut it out, both of you!" Pebble snaps as he angrily kicks the last scroll we just read through, a scroll that was supposed to have the entire history of Pyrrhia since the Scorching.

"Anything?" I ask.

He angrily shakes his head. "We're just pests, mice! And Teardrops are apparently extinct with Nightwing's as well, which means-"

"They're damn knaves!" Palm roared as she slammed her fist down on the floor, scaring a couple of giant spiders walking past.

"So Fatespeaker lied to us-" Toucan started.

"Fatespeaker isn't lying, I think she genuinely believes she has the ability but..." I trail off.

"So she's crazy?" Palm snickers.

"She's not crazy, and can you blame her for wanting a better life, for dreaming a better life, look where she grew up!"

"Enough, fighting won't get us anywhere, get the spider to bring out the next scroll." Pebble sighs, the darkness caused by the shadows almost perfectly hid the black spots under his eyes, he hadn't gone to sleep once.

"That was the last one, Pebble-" I announced.

"FUCK!" He curses, as he kicks one of the stone shelves, only to immediately regret it. "OW!"

"Pebble, you okay?" I ask as I go to his side and lay him down on the floor.

"Am I okay? We are stuck in hell knows where, with no answers on where we came from, surrounded by giant spiders, and I just stubbed my toe!"

I back off as he vents till he sighs and just sits upright.

"Sorry, I can't... I'm just... we have to think clearly if we want to figure things out." He says as he looks up, but suddenly there's a spark in his eye. "Maybe we're looking in the wrong section?" He reasons aloud as he stands up and starts limping forward.

"There's Pebble, what's going on in that mind of yours?" Palm asks.

"Something like scavengers having power may seem impossible to dragons, so maybe instead of looking at facts, we should turn to fiction." He said as we made our way between two rows. "Myths and fairytales. Let's see if we might be able to find some answers."

***

My legs trembles as I stayed on my knees to read the text, it had been an hour and all I could find were mentions of this Darkstalker guy, the amount of texts he was in kinda made it seem like they were really pushing for this guy to be fake, maybe a concerned parent with a child that wouldn't go to sleep complained too much? It didn't matter, and it got harder to resist letting my eyes close and embrace the comfortable darkness of sleep.

"I got something!" Toucan suddenly announced.

We all practically bolted as we all turned to read his scroll.

"It isn't much but look at this."

We all leaned down and kneeled to take a look.

Once ago, there were a race of scavengers, but unlike their brethren, these creatures were more evil and more intelligent compared to the rest of their kind, always causing chaos in our society, stealing our food and messing with our prophecies, doing whatever they could to make a mess out of things. They...

"It just turns into a wild fairy tale about some random dragon and bugs and songs but if you skip all the way to the end, listen to this." Toucan said as he directed us to the end.

In the end, the draconic hero, Nightweaver, locked them away in a prison deep under the water with no way to ever reach the surface, where they could never mess with our prophecies again.

Next to the story, were a few pictures to go along with the writing and to the bottom was a large drawing of some type of temple under the water and on the large gates was a bright and vibrant symbol of an eye shedding tears. The temple had a very unique shape, with the center the shape of a hexagon and a square extending from each side.

The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.

"Wait a minute, I think I saw this." Pebble said as he then beckoned us over to another scroll, something about architecture. And right next to the library, although it wasn't marked or labelled like the rest of the map, was that temple. The ink marking it on the map was smudged though, as if it had been erased, but thankfully the torchlight was enough to allow us see all those details. Extending from one the square parts of the temple was what seems to be some long bridge, connected right to the library and another building that I had seen earlier on Fatespeaker, although that building was barely standing anymore.

"It exists, and there's a bridge." I think aloud.

"Let's go then, maybe we can find it!" Palm called out for us as she was already running to where the map said the bridge was.

***

"You sure this is it?" Palm asked as we stood there.

"This is what the map said." Toucan sighed.

"They did say it was under the water." I shrug.

"I was hoping for water, not this." Palm sighed.

We all looked out to the horizon, where the sea of lava extended to the limits of our vision, it's glow making the sky purple and any clouds were barely seen due to the smog concealing them. It was quiet except for our breathing and the sound of the lava waves churning and crashing against the shore and the ancient structure we stood on.

"This is the bridge, and despite the lava's occasional rise, the bridge seems unaffected, whatever material this is, it isn't natural." Pebble said as he slammed a piece of rock against the material below us, there was a loud thud as the rock cracked into the material. We all watched as the material then started to twist as the surface filled and the cracked completely disappeared. "I think it's enchanted, like the gems." Pebble mused as he put the rock down and looked back at the sea of the fire. "It's... it's still down there guys, and it might have the answers." He said as his senses locked onto the sea ahead.

"What if it just leads to more questions?"

"Of course it will but still, this is the closest anyone has been, and what else can we do?" I gestured ahead.

Toucan nodded but Palm scoffed.

"I think... I think I know how we can get across, no, I know how to get us across." Pebble announced as he took a deep breath.

"Seriously?" Palm asked.

"How?" Toucan questioned.

"Pebble, no." I quickly cut in as I caught onto his plan.

"River, it's-"

"You started to bleed when you tried to stop a dragon, there's no way you can survive-"

"I have to try-"

"You'll die Pebble!" I raise my voice.

"So?"

My eyes narrowed. "I already lost Scorpion, I already lost my dad, I won't lose you too-"

"I LOVED SCORPION!" He suddenly shouts, causing me to take a step back as we just stood there with baited breath.

"W-what?"

"I loved Scorpion, that's why I can never forgive myself for letting her go, and for never telling her..."

"Pebble... I-I'm sorry-"

"It's not your fault, that's the point." He said in a scarily calm voice.

"Pebbles..." I start, only to trail off shortly after.

"She was the first one who came up with that nickname y'know?" She paused as he continued to stare at the sea of fire. " River... I... I want to see her again... I really do."

"I... I don't want to lose you too..."

"You won't, you'll just be letting me go."

"Is there a difference?" I ask him to which he quietly chuckles.

"More than you know." He then takes a deep breath as he looks at me. "Kid, I've lived my life, you haven't."

"I'm only a few years younger than you-"

"And that can be a lifetime for others."

I start to sputter. "Toucan, Palm, help me out here?" I ask, but the pair remain silent until Toucan asks.

"Is this really what you want?"

All Pebble does is stare back at him with a blank stare.

Palm nods. "We understand."

I shake my head.

"Please don't do this."

"... You'll be fine without me, you already got this far, didn't you?"

"Pebble, we can find another way- what are you two doing?" I yelled as Palm and Toucan held me by my arms. I thrashed and tried to bite but they managed to turn away only for me to watch in time as Pebble lifted his hand to the air. "PEBBLE NO!" I shouted, only to fall on deaf ears.

The water roared as it split into two gigantic walls of flames, revealing the stone pathway leading down, where at the end, the silhouette of the temple could be seen.

Pebble started to walk forward. "Let's go." He rasped to the others as he started to sweat.

"Damn you Pebbles!" I yelled as we all started to bolt down the long path.

"Guys, go! I can't hold it for long!" Pebble gasped as blood started to drip down his nose.

"Three moons dammit! If we're going, we're going together!" I yelled at him as I mustered all my strength to pick up his smaller figure and start sprinting down the path, where I could feel more of his blood drip on my head and on my clothes.

"Come on, hang in there, you better not die on my back!" I growl as put all my strength into sprinting forward, trying to avoid looking at the giant walls of lava on either side of me.

"I'll try..." Pebble gasped weakly as I glanced up at him, I saw blood starting to fall from his eyes and mouth.

"You better..." I mutter as I try not to gag at the horrid sight and keep running forward.

We finally get to the massive doors of the temple, but we see no way to open it.

"How are we supposed to open this thing?" Toucan cries out as he looks around at the massive doors, before finding a small symbol of the crying eye again on the side.

"Guys..." Pebble tried speaking some more but his voice soon turned to gurgling as his hand started to drop, and the other end became flooded with lava, the new wall of lava now heading straight for us. Is this how we die? We die covered in a tsunami of lava caused by our own hubris?

"River, give me the damn gem!" Palm suddenly screamed in my ear.

I didn't question it and gave her the gem as I turned around to get a better grip on Pebble's body who was slowly losing consciousness.

Palm quickly waved the gem in front of the eye and a loud creaking noise was heard as the giant doors slowly started to open up, revealing the interior, illuminated by some type of yellow light.

"Go go go!" I quickly yelled as Pebble's hands finally went limp and fell, his eyes rolling back, and the roar of the waves growing louder as the walls started to crumble.

"Close it! Close it!" I yelled as Palm rushed to the symbol inside and practically slammed the gem into the eye. We all ran as fast as we could, especially as I dragged Pebble's body as the lava got closer and closer even as the doors closed. A splash of lava got in, nearly dripping onto us before the doors finally let out a loud clicking noise, and the waves of lava stopped.

I sighed in relief before gently setting down Pebble's body and putting my finger on his neck, my own heart skipping as I felt a small thumping sensation. "You're alive, thank the moons, you're alive." I sigh in relief as I then look at Palm. "How'd you figure it out?"

"I guessed." She admitted with a shrug as Toucan laughed, I couldn't tell what emotion was escaping him though, happiness, relief, sadness that we were now trapped under an ocean of lava?

But then my head perked up as I heard something... impossible. "Guys, is that..." I trailed off.

"Music?" Palm asked.