----------------------------------------

Dexter

----------------------------------------

I tensed as I felt the sensation of freefall, followed by total blackness, and finally a cold splash as I hit the water. I felt icy cold daggers being pressing into my skin as I sank beneath the surface. “UP. UP. UP.” I quickly stopped my descent in the freezing water. The muted blackness around felt like it was closing in and I moved my arms frantically, quickly orienting myself and desperately trying to get back to the surface. I felt myself rise through the water as my internal temperature started to drop. I emerged from the hypothermic water and took deep gulping breaths. “Sh-SHIT!” I roared, my feet stinging from the drop. I was starting to tremble as I waded there, acclimating to freezing cold water.

From up above, I could hear Amelia's concerned voice. “Are You Alright?”

I nodded as I took shaky breaths and wiped the water from my face. “Y-Yeah. I-I'm Okay. I-It's Just F-F-Fucking Cold Down Here.” I raised my hand out of the water and shakily cast Illuminate, causing a soft white light to fill the space around me. I waited for my eyes to adjust to the blackness, the monotone world slowly revealing itself as I waded there. I looked at the perfectly smooth and circular wall surrounding me as the water below swallowed what little light was entering it. I looked up and was met with the same pitch blackness I had seen looking down. Only this time, it gave the above space an impossible height. I looked around at the veritable lake I was swimming in. The only thing disturbing the otherwise calm surface was my active paddling. “The calm probably means nothing near the surface, at least nothing big. I'll need a look beneath the surface if I want to see what I'm dealing with. Also, completely smooth walls. Meaning anything that could be a possible entrance will be below the surface.” I shivered in the water as I looked down. The light from the orb was being refracted in all directions, making it near impossible to see much more than my own wading legs. “Now if only I could see down there.”

I looked up as Amelia's voice called down from above. “Can you see anything?”

I shook my head as I looked around, causing the water to let out some wet splashes. “A-A G-Giant L-Lake At The B-Bottom. I H-Haven't D-Dived Yet. I'm Just G-Getting U-Used T-To The T-Temperature.” I looked down again as I psyched myself up to go deeper. My eyes were finally adjusting, and I could see some more of the pit below me. The one part of the wall I could see continued to dive into the depths, giving the pit the same impossible depth I'd had above. I took a few more breaths as I finally worked up the courage and dipped below the surface. The world became muted again as I guided myself through the water, my hand still holding onto my only source of light. I felt the pressure build as I descended and stuck close to the wall, the light only showing a few feet of the wall before fading to blackness. I swam ten feet, then twenty feet. I felt apprehension as I descended a little further. The light wasn't doing much and just left me floating in near blackness as the event above came to the forefront of my mind. “It's either undertow or animal. Dumag lowered a lot of rope before it snapped so it's safe to assume any undertow is quite a way down. Although, estimates have never been my strong suit, so I might be hovering right over it. In which case, it would be a bad idea to go down any further. There's also the amount of wall I'd have to search. About two hundred feet across, six hundred or so in circumference. Meaning twelve thousand square feet to search in just the first twenty feet. Definitely take a while with this tiny fucking light.” My heightened state made me aware of my slowly dwindling supply of oxygen and I started swimming back up, glancing down at the impossible darkness as I did so. “Thoughts better had with an ample supply of air.” I took a deep breath as I broke the surface again and raised the light back out of the water. “I need a brighter light. I can't see shit with this tiny fucking candle. Not to mention my lack of mobility. I just traveled fifty feet on one breath. I'll need a faster way to move about if I want to find an entrance, assuming there is one.” I let a few ideas wander through my mind as I floated there. The fact that I had only one hand to swim was the big thing, effectively cutting my directional movement in half. At the same time, I needed the light to see in the darkness. “If it weren't for the enchanted curtain, I could probably see all the way to the bottom. We'd just need to find a way to disrupt the . . . Son Of A Bitch!” I looked up at the pitch blackness as I internally slapped and berated myself. “Brokil, Can You Do That Pulse Thing Again?” I was met with what was likely confused silence.

Finally, Brokil's voice answered. “What Would That Accomplish?” He shouted back. We were only about forty feet apart, but the divide between us made it feel like miles.

I stared deliberately at the curtain as I answered. “You Said The Pulse Could Disrupt Spells. If This Enchantment Has Been Here All This Time, Maybe A Good Shove Could Send It Over The Edge.” I was again met with a pregnant silence. After another pause, I felt a whoof of air and I watched as the curtain of darkness was suddenly removed, blown back by an invisible breeze and revealing the cave above. I clenched my eyes shut and looked down as the once dark pit was suddenly ablaze with light. “Thank You.” “You're a fucking dumbass. You're a fucking dumbass. You're a fucking dumbass. This should have been thought of first, before jumping in, you absolute dumbass.” I looked up and squinted at the group staring down at me. “No time for self-beration. That solved my lighting issue, but there's still a doorway to find if there is one.” I looked down as my eyes finally adjusted and I extinguished the tiny ball of light, regaining full mobility. The pit below me was now lit up, the soft yellow light giving the walls of the pit a strange green tint. The bottom of the pit was about a hundred feet below me and barely visible from where I waded, the water between me and it was noticeably devoid of creatures. “Undertow just got a bump in chances. Though that needs a source and I can't see any break in the walls from here. Speaking of.” I scanned around as I tried to find something that would indicate an opening to the chamber, seeing nothing but the same smooth walls that I saw on my first dive.

I looked up as Salthu's voice rang out. “Over There!” I saw his figure pointing towards an area to my right and I turned to see what it was. Beneath the surface of the water, about forty feet down, a ledge was sticking ten feet out into the pit. Right above where it was anchored, a doorway was carved into the wall.

I turned and gave a thumbs-up to the group. “Nice eye.” I then turned back, took a deep breath, and dove below the surface. The world became muted again, but this time I had a clear vision of what to aim for. I kicked furiously and swam towards the tiny spot in the distance, carefully measuring my breath as I did so. Eventually, I got close enough to the ledge to make out details. The hole was eight feet tall and the ledge was just as long, shaped almost the exact same way as if someone had merely pushed the wall down to create the ledge. The ledge itself was as smooth as the walls around it, rounding off at the edges before dropping into the pit. I found it hard to believe that something like this didn't have a railing. Curiously, there was some kind of anvil near the lip of it. An overturned chair, made entirely of stone, was resting further along the ledge. They were strangely the only things resting on the ledge. I swam towards the chair and grabbed on, anchoring myself, as I looked through the doorway. The light from the sunstone seemed to be enchanted, causing it to bend into every possible crevice. I could see clearly into the chamber as if a flashlight were being shined directly into it. Far beyond the doorway, at the back wall of the chamber, sat a stone throne. It was similar in appearance to the one at the Great Hall, but made entirely of stone and seemingly shaped from the floor itself. The only other difference was the massive crack running through it, splitting the seat across where a torso would be. I let go of the chair and swam a short way through the door, glancing around as I entered. The similarities with the Great Hall just continued. Stone pillars ran along the chamber, engraved with that pattern you'd see in Roman ruins. The wall behind the throne had a similar alcove to the one built into the Great Hall. The similarities stopped there through. The sides of the chamber were lined with innumerable tables, again made of stone, but seemed to be slammed against the wall by an unknown force. “The fuck happened here?” I wondered as I gazed about. The tables seemed impossibly heavy, unlike the simple wood back at the city, yet were piled into a big mass behind the stone pillars lining the room. The pillars still stood, but the space beyond the pillars were just masses of rock. If I tried, I doubt I'd be able to squeeze into the pile. “Bad vibes. What the fuck would be able to do that?” I glanced at the sides of the chamber, trying to find where the stairs would be. Instead, I saw two piles of rocks spilling into the chamber from two doorways at opposite ends of the chamber. “Alright. That would definitely take a while to clear that out. About eighty feet down, about a hundred or so feet around. Judging from the doorway, looks to be eight feet by four feet, thirty-two square foot passageway. Assuming that would remain consistent and not get bigger, that's a couple of thousand cubic feet of stone to move. That's not even considering the water we'd likely have to go through. Since I'm the only one that can swim, I'd be swimming back and forth for a single boulder. Definitely not a viable option right now. That would take a lot of time that I'm not willing to give up right now. A short swim is probably the only way we're going to get there anytime soon. Speaking of swim.”

I turned and began swimming back out, the icy cold temperature of the water growing less noticeable as I moved. I felt the pressure gradually disappear as I approached the surface again, the water casting swaying beams into the pit below, against the wishes of the light itself. I finally broke the surface again and took a big gulp of air. Amelia's voice was the first thing I heard when I emerged from the water. “What Did You See Down There? Is It The Chamber?”

I nodded as I wiped the water from my face. “It's Some Kind Of Throne Room,” I called, leaning back and beginning to drift on the surface. “I Don't Know What The Fuck Happened Here, But The Place Is A Mess. The Stairway Down Is Also Collapsed. It Would Probably Take Us An Entire Week To Pull All The Rocks Out.”

Salthu's voice was the next to ask a question. “What Of The Tunnel? Did You See The Way To The Archive?”

I shook my head as I leaned back and just floated there. “I Don't Have The Breath To Make It In Very Far. I'm Still Having To Swim Down And Save Enough Breath To Make It Back. We Might Need To Come Back With Some Kind Of Water Breathing Spell.”

It was Dumag's turn to voice his thoughts. “I Would Advise Against That. We Have Lingered Here Too Long And Likely Have Drawn A Deal Of Silent Attention. If We Leave Now, They May Swoop In And Claim The Find For Themselves.” I stared up as I realized something. We were standing in the middle of a well know chamber, right in view of anyone that wanted to look down. With how much noise we were making, I would be surprised if we weren’t already drawing some strange gazes from others in the city.

I growled annoyedly and gestured dismissively as I floated there. I was starting to realize we were not equipped for this and needed a new plan. “So What If Another Group ‘Claims The Find’? The Institute Still Gets The Spell-Stones And Whatever Else Is In The Archive. It Just Means Our Names Aren't On The Damn Thing.”

Salthu quickly voiced his objections, leaning over the pit aggressively. “I Would Like That To Not Be the Events That Transpire.”

I glared up at the group as I floated there. It was honestly a small thing, but I was getting annoyed about having to swim in a freezing cold lake. “What Do You Want Me To Do? I Can't Spontaneously Grow Gills. I Haven't Even Touched Transformation Magic Yet So Even If You Guys Knew A Spell I Couldn't Learn It In Time. I Wouldn’t Be Able To Beat Any Potential Competition. Besides, It’ll Still Take Me Time To Get To The Actual Place And I Doubt Others Won't Already Have Found A Way To the Tunnel.”

Salthu was silent for a moment as he seemed to consider the situation. “Can You At Least Make An Attempt?” He asked desperately. I floated there as I heavily considered the request. “There are no spells that directly help in the situation. The hop spell won’t be able to find purchase in a medium like this. Then again, I do dislike the idea of all this time being wasted for someone else to get the glory. What’s more, I really want to get my hands on Doomach’s spellstones. If someone else claims the find, I’ll be stuck waiting till the knowledge becomes available or spellstones become an option in the storehouse. Which could take ages. As uncomfortable as this is, giving up now seems downright tragic.”

I finally let out a sigh as I reached up and wiped my face. “Fine I'll Try To Think Of Something, But I'll Still Need To Find Out If The Archive Is Underwater. I Can't Do Shit If I Can't Breath Down There.” Salthu appeared to be relieved and leaned back as I pointed towards a Gremach shaped blur. “Gremach, Start Working Your Magic. Modify The Spell Again If You Have To. It Might Not Even Be That Hard, Just Add Another Sensor Or Something To It. Make It Distinguish Things That Are Denser Than Air, But Less Dense Than Wood Or Something. My Bag Of Manastone Should Still Be Up There. Use However Many You Need.” I saw them nod in agreement before disappearing over the edge. I gestured to the others as I started brainstorming ways to move underwater. “Some Of You Go Help Him. The Rest Start Helping Me Think Of A Way To Move Down Here.” I saw a few of them nod as they followed Gremach away from the ledge, Brokil, Bruga, and Dumag, leaving Me with Amelia and Salthu to brainstorm. I started by asking the obvious question. “What Do We Have To Work With? Is There Any Wood Up There We Could Shape Into Flippers?”

I saw Salthu's blur shake its head. “Any Wood That Was Here Rotted Long Ago. I Also Do Not Know What These ‘Flippers' Are.”

Amelia spoke up as she explained. “They're What We Use To Move Faster In The Water, But I Doubt That'll Work As Well As You Need With Wood. It'll Be Stiff And Difficult To Handle. Wood Just Doesn't Have The Flexibility Of Plastic.” I nodded as I mentally crossed off the option. I opened my mouth to propose some sort of propeller, but Amelia got to her proposal first. “What About Using Waterjet?” She asked.

I paused to consider. “Does The Waterjet Even Exert Force On The Caster?” I asked.

Amelia shrugged. “Maybe. I Doubt They Could Completely Negate Newton's Third Law. Magic Or Not, physics is physics.” I nodded as I closed my eyes and ran through the scenario. “It's not very powerful with one mana, but it sounds forceful for the recipient. Even if they reduced the rebound by fifty percent, that's still quite a bit of force at my disposal.”

I opened my eyes and looked up at them as I leaned forward and returned to wading. “I'll Give It A Shot.” I then turned and dove a short way below the surface, preparing a Waterjet for each hand. I was going to deliberately stagger the preparations so that I wasn't using any stamina to power the jets. I stared at the ledge even further beneath me as I finished my preparations. “Here goes nothing.” I directed my hands back and staggered the spells, causing jets of new water to join the old and propel me backward. “Backwards?” I looked around in confusion as the ten feet I descended quickly closed to zero and I was practically spat out by the water. I flailed wildly as I involuntarily jumped five feet from the water and quickly fell back down. “What The Fucking SHIT?” I had just enough time to voice my confusion before I belly-flopped back into the water with a loud WHAM. I clutched my stomach as I resurfaced and used my other hand to wade there.

Amelia's concerned voice called down again. “Are You Okay?” She asked.

I nodded as I looked down at my hand. “I Went Backwards From My Intended Direction. It's Like The Water Dragged Me Along Rather Than Push Me Forward.” I looked up at the two in confusion. “What Kind Of Backwards Physics Is Going On Here?”

I saw Amelia shrug as she seemed to consider. “Maybe The Water Around You Is Exerting More Force On You Than The Spell Itself?”

I stared up at her in confusion. “What Kind Of Explanation Is That?” I asked, a little angrier than warranted.

Amelia shrugged, probably just as confused as I was. “I Don't Know. I'm Just Spitballing Here.” I let out a breath as I leaned back again and returned to floating. “Magic is already the breaker of scientific rules. I can't rule out wonky play when I use it to accomplish tasks. Then again, maybe it's a scientific phenomenon that caused that.” I was about to ask Amelia about it when she answered it for me. “I Think It's Called The Venturi Effect. If You Introduce A Directional Current Of Air In The Middle Of A Tube, One Side Will Develop A Suction While The Other Side Expels Said Air.”

I was silent for a moment as I considered what she was saying. “So You Could Make A Vacuum Using A Tube And A Compressor?”

Amelia nodded. “A Low Powered One, But Yeah. Maybe The Waterjet Is Just Sucking You Along Rather Than Pushing You Forward.” I looked down at my hand again as I thought through the logic. “Sounds fake, but technically so is magic. If that's what happened then. . . .” I turned and dipped below the surface again, preparing two more Waterjets as I did so. I stared at the ledge again as I aimed the jets forward this time. “Here goes nothing.” I fired the spell and shot, or rather was sucked, forward. It wasn't the wrenching start you expect, though I could tell my feet were dragging in the water. Rather it was as if the water around me just wanted to carry me someplace new. Despite making it to the ledge in a matter of seconds, I didn't feel the water resist me, like a constant kickoff without the usual pushback. The sensation was one-part disconcerting and one-part exhilarating. I felt like Superman, propelled through the water like it wasn't even there. “Oh yeah, this will definitely work out.”

I swam back to the surface as I finally started running out of breath. I gave a thumbs-up to the two figures looks down at me from the ledge. “That Worked Perfectly, Amelia.” It was hard for me to make out details at this distance, what with my lack of glasses, but I swear I could see Amelia smile wide. I then turned and looked down at the ledge again. “Let's take a closer look then.” I took a deep breath and dove again, using Waterjet to close the gap in a matter of seconds. I continued my momentum and swam into the chamber, glancing around as I did so. Everything was still where I'd first seen it, stone tables piled randomly against the walls, throne at the far end, stone piled in the doorways. Now that I had more time to look around, I noticed the walls had small alcoves placed intermittently along the room. Some of them had statues of orcs standing in them while others were barren. There wasn't any pattern to the placements. The alcove just either had a statue or it didn't. I swam farther in as I glanced up at the ceiling. It was arched and curved how you'd see in those Vatican buildings only without the art on it, at least any art that had survived being submerged for who knows how long. There were a few bubbles of air in some of the curves, but I doubt I'd be able to surface there and breathe. I glanced nervously at the two massive piles as I approached the throne. Now that I was further in, I could see a few chips off the walls and statues where some of the tables had struck. One of the statues even had its head missing, a glint emanating from the pale stone as I approached. I was tempted to investigate, but shook my head and focused on the back wall as I finally arrived at the throne. Unlike the throne room at Snakagr, this place seemed to have only one other exit. On the left side of the back wall was a doorway leading into some sort of tunnel. It was intact, but the stone doors seemed to be falling off the hinges. I couldn't see very far in, the light seemed to be having trouble reaching it, but since it was the only exit from the room it must have been what I was looking for. I turned to leave the chamber as pinned down my route but stopped as I noticed something odd. There was a lone statue on the left side of the room, frozen in place as it ran towards the door. I glanced in confusion at the alcove. The statue was gripping the lip of it as if it had just dropped down from the space. I looked at the other side of the room, expecting another statue in a similar position. I did see a second statue, but this one broken free of his alcove and was frozen in step, running towards the same door. “That's . . . weird.” I turned and propelled myself out of the chamber as I tried to piece together why the statues were there. “No way those were carved that way. Is it possible to make living statues? That would explain the missing ones and their positioning. That just asks more questions though. Why are the tables like this? Why are there statues walking towards the door? What The Fuck Happened Here?”

The author's content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

I swam back to the surface and returned to floating as I rested. Amelia called down as I caught my breath again. “Did You See A Tunnel?”

I nodded as I reached out of the water and gave a thumbs-up. “It's At The Back And Wide Open. Once Gremach Checks To See If The Archive Is Flooded, I Can Head In And Place The Beacon.” Amelia nodded as she glanced back before disappearing over the ledge. I floated there as I continued to pant and try and rationalize the statues. “If they were moving then something must have activated them. If they stopped, then something must have stopped the activator. The fact that the stone tables were like that just confuses the situation. What the hell could do that and why were the statues moving and what caused them to stop?” I looked up as figures looked back over the edge and the others finally rejoined us. “What's The Verdict? Is The Tunnel Above Water?” The figure that I can conclude to be Gremach nodded as he gestures, causing a blown-up map to appear above me.

Gremach began explaining as he pointed. “The Portion With The Archive Is Free Of Water. However, There Are Many Tunnels Between Here And There. It May Be Impossible For One To Swim That Far.” I stared up at the map. It was a positional view of the tunnel and the Archive. The Archive was highlighted in purple, a massive cube next to the tunnel connected to it. The tunnel itself was in a transparent green while blue represented the water. It showed the corner of the pit as well as the chamber and the tunnel behind it. Unfortunately, the amount of tunnel that was flooded vastly outmatched the unflooded part. I estimated two hundred or so feet between the chamber and the Archive and only the last twenty feet were unflooded. A few other rooms and tunnels branched off from the main one, there was even a spiraling staircase around the middle part of the tunnel, but I think I could tell how I'd navigate. It didn't help that the tunnel twisted and turned along those two hundred feet, but I should be able to manage. I committed the map to memory as I thought about how I'd traverse the distance. “That's going to be a long time to hold my breath. About five seconds for forty feet. Twenty-five for two hundred. Fifty for four hundred. That's not factoring in the twists and turns of the tunnel and how I'm going to have to measure my speed to avoid slamming into the walls. Plus, there's that staircase to deal with. That'll probably add another fifty feet or so. Stop thinking about it. You've already done the math. You have about a minute of travel before you should emerge. You can make it. You've just got to do it.”

I held up my thumb again before turning back to the water below. “I'll Signal You Once I Get There. It Should Only Take A Few Minutes.” I took a few deep breaths as I psyched myself up to make the dive. “Worse comes to worst, I just teleport using the beacon. Though I doubt it'll come to that.” I took one last breath then dove into the water. I quickly cast Waterjet and rocketed towards the ledge again. I glanced at the anvil and chair as I passed, then at the tables and stairs as I entered the room. I directed my path to take a shorter route to the door, shaving what was probably a few seconds off my time. I glanced at the first statue again as I swam over it. It was carved to have a full suit of knight's armor, with added room for the tusks in the helmet, as well as a spear and circular shield, much like what I'd see the orcs at Snakhagr use in battle. I couldn't see much of the actual skin of the one beneath the armor, but I could see the carved eyes through the faceplate of the helmet. I turned to the tunnel as I practically flew through the doorway. I released one of the jets as I entered the doorway and started moving into the darkness. The sunstone seemed to be struggling to light this far into the passageway. I cast Illuminate again and caused a muted light to occupy the space around me. I glided through the tunnel as I focused on getting to the end as quickly as possible. I passed doorways and rooms that seemed tempting to explore but concentrated on the set path I'd seen. “Thirty Mississippi. Thirty-One Mississippi. Thirty-two-” The short time felt like it was stretching on for eternity. The primal parts of my brain were telling me to panic as I grew further and further from a known source of air. I quelled those urges as I pressed on in the near blackness, keeping the mental image of the tunnel at the forefront of my thoughts. “Right about . . . here.” I came upon the doorway to the staircase and carefully glided through. I ascended the staircase, feet pushing against the wall to keep from scraping against it. “Fifty Mississippi Fifty-one Mississippi. Fifty-two-” The cold water seemed to grow colder as the stone around me sucked all heat that it could.

I finally came to the top of the stairs and I passed through the doorway, kicking up a trail of dust as I did. “There's actual dirt here. I must be close to some air.” After a while longer I rounded a corner and came upon the final set of stairs that would lead me to the surface. I felt my heart pounding as my mind conjured up a wrong turn somewhere in my journey. “No, this is it. You just have to go up. If anything happens, you just teleport out of here.” I felt my body shake again as I pushed forward and started ascending again. At first, the only thing my light could reveal was me, the tunnel, and the stairs below me. I propelled through the water as my air continued to slowly dwindle. “Eighty Mississippi. Eighty-one Mississippi. Eighty-two-” This was far longer than I had anticipated. My panic rose as the steps appear to ascend forever. I was a decent swimmer, but my mind was starting to panic at the state I put myself in. I was tempted to brag at the beacon at teleport out as quickly as I could. I pushed the thought aside and kept climbing. I suddenly saw a shimmer ahead, a break in the water I was swiftly gliding through. “A Hundred Mississippi. A hundred and one Mississippi. A hundred and Two Mississippi.”

I finally saw the water end above and I surged forward, desperate for air. I took a deep breath as I broke the surface and the water briefly surged to join me in the tunnel. I panted and coughed as I lifted the light out of the water and looked around. The tunnel was cold and damp, the slightest noise echoing around the enclosed space. The stairs continued for a little longer before stopping at a landing above me. I climbed out of the water, shivering as the cold stone around me sapped all the heat from the air. I felt my feet slip slightly on the step and I started to move slower. “Definitely don't want to fall here.” I climbed the last of the stairs and stepped into the tunnel beyond. I held up my light as I shivered in the cold air. The tunnel seemed to continue on and on from where I stood. I slowly walked forward on the slippery ground, searching for the telltale sign of the Archive. “It was connected right to this tunnel. It should be somewhere around- there.” I held the light up higher as the tunnel expanded in size and a glint appeared to my left.

The light revealed a doorway embedded into the wall, intricately built and designed. It was a little over fifteen feet tall and just as wide, made of yellowish metal and engraved with a complex design. The door itself had a radial pattern made up of about seven concentric circles on the front, engraved with near countless runes and symbols. The vault aesthetic was not lost on me as I saw a large X emblazoned at the center of this pattern. On either side of the circle were two small recesses in the metal, about elbow height, just thick enough to fit a forearm. I ran my hand along the bottom circle as I took in the sight. A large ‘ᛤ’ symbol, about the size of my hand, was resting in the metal as I ran my fingers along the emblem. “Definitely what we're looking for.” I thought, ecstatic about the discovery. I turned and pulled the beacon out of my pocket, forcing a burst of mana into it before placing it on the ground beside me. I continued to marvel at the spectacle before me as I waited for the others to appear. pop pop pop The sound of teleports started to fill the tunnel as the others materialized beside me. More lights filled the space and bathed the door in their colors. I heard Salthu let out an awed “Hhhhhhhh.” as he saw the door. His voice echoed as much as the dripping water.

I grinned as I place my hands on my hips. “Th-this gives the R-Repository a r-run for its money. D-doesn't it.” I remarked. I heard the sliding footsteps of them walking up behind me as I felt the hairs on my body stand on end. I felt a tap on my shoulder and I turned to see Amelia handing me my things back, staring in amazement at the door. I took the bundle of belts and cloth as I put everything back on, doing a quick inventory as I strapped the sword to my waist. “Shirt, sword, potion, manastones, shoes, glasses.” I glanced at Gremach as I checked the manastone. “How many stones did you end up using?” I asked curiously.

Gremach didn't look at me but continued to marvel at the door as he held up two fingers. “Just two.” He replied. I nodded as I looked at the door again. My mind started running wild with what could be behind it. “Calm down, we still need to get it open. Hell, I don't even know how this is supposed to open. There's no noticeable hinge and it doesn't seem good design to build a vault to open inward.”

I turned to Salthu as he stepped forward and began carefully examining one of the recesses. “What do you think? Do you have any ideas on how to open it?”

Salthu didn't reply for a moment, choosing instead to peer into the recess and then sticking one of his arms in. He then glanced at the other recess before answering. “I believe the Archive requires some form of a key.” He replied, voice trembling with excitement. “It is a vault, after all. I thought the key would be verbal or magical, but these holes appear to contradict that. We may require both to open the treasure within.”

I nodded as I glanced back and forth, first to where I'd come from, then where we hadn't explored. “Then I suggest we start exploring. Something happened here and I'm guessing we'll find some answers further in.”

Amelia turned to look quizzically at me. “What would make you say that?” She asked.

I gestured towards the flooded tunnel as I explained. “There were stone tables pushed against the wall as if they were fucking cardboard and two statues that I'm fairly certain moved from their posts.” At this point, everyone had their attention on me.

“What is this about stone tables?” Bruga asked, amazed.

“What do you mean left their posts?” Brokil asked, concerned.

I gestured calmingly as they all asked rapid-fire questions. “To answer everything at once. Back in the throne room, I saw massive tables piled against the wall, as if they were forcibly pushed there, and two statues that I'm pretty sure had started moving towards our tunnel before stopping. As for the who, how, when, and why, I'm as lost as you.” The others glanced nervously at each other and then at the Archive door. I pointed into the darkness of the tunnel, causing everyone to turn, as I continued. “There must have been something that happened and I'm guessing the best answers will be further in. If the Archive needs a key, then we might be able to find it there too.” I turned back to the others as I smiled encouragingly. “All we have to do is explore.”

I was met with some encouraging expressions, but Brokil stepped forward to sour the mood a bit. “It would be unwise to leave the beacon unattended. We had to leave one behind to make the trip so that we could travel back once we are finished here.” I nodded as the new time limit dawned on me. “Right there might be some silent watchers. If we leave they might come through and claim the Archive for themselves.”

I looked at the door as another plan came to mind. “Can we just teleport in? If we just teleport past the door, we could place another beacon and use that as a means of entrance.”

Salthu shook his head as he ran his hands along the door. “That would be the first thing they would enchant against. In any case, we cannot be sure that doing such will transport us into the open air. We may teleport into an unknown object within the Archive and incur damages, either to us or the Archive itself.”

I turned to Gremach as Salthu finished pointing out the flaw in my plan. “Can we use the spell to see inside? Make it obvious to know what's in there?”

Gremach looked at the door before shaking his head. “I do not believe the spell would function. It relies on the pulse entering and calling back to the first spell. In the case of the Archive, they may have enchanted against such use of mana.”

I let out an angered sigh as I turned back to the tunnel.”Then we better go exploring.”

I was about to start delegating teams when Amelia stepped forward and spoke up. “Leave the Archive to Salthu, Gremach, and me. The rest of you can look for the keys while we see if we can find another way in.” She then stooped and picked up the beacon. “If we find one, we'll signal you.”

Brokil, Salthu, and Gremach glanced at me expectantly. I paused for a second to consider then nodded. “You heard her. Let's split up. We'll cover more ground that way.” They nodded as I started walking into the darkness leading Bruga, Brokil, and Dumag deeper into the mountain.

I heard a few mutterings from Salthu as it sounded like he was rummaging through his bag. “Let us see how well locked this vault is.” His voice barely reaching my ears before it became but a whisper.

I held up the light as we walked, the tunnel narrowing back into the version I'd swam through earlier. The light being produced by the other group slowly faded out as we walked, the slippery floor slowly growing dryer as we went. We passed an empty alcove and I glanced at the others as I voiced a warning. “Be on the lookout for moving statues. I doubt the ones I saw are the only ones that could move. We don't know if they're hostile or not so err on the side of caution.” They nodded as we continued further in passing a few more alcoves as we did. I held my light up higher as I noticed something glinting in the distance. I slowly drew my sword as I slowed to a crawl and the others followed suit. “Up ahead,” I whispered, pointing with my sword. We slowly crept forward as the glint became more apparent and we passed a few more alcoves. Finally, the glinting fully entered our vision and I stifled a soft retch. Laying before us was a skeleton, a bright yellow shawl partially covering a chest plate and a crown of bones resting heavily on its skull. I covered my nose as the smell of a decayed corpse fill the air. Dumag crouched to examine the body as he pulled the decaying shawl aside, revealing the source of the glinting. Resting on the floor was a pristine gauntlet, unphased by the decay of the other items around it. The skeleton’s right hand was completely enveloped by the item. It was the nicest gauntlet I'd ever seen, shiny and made entirely of a silvery metal despite its obvious age. It was engraved with innumerable arcane symbols and inlaid with seven gemstones on the back of the palm. Dumag reached down and turned the gauntlet over, revealing a sort of image etched into the inner forearm. Dumag and the others let in a small gasp as they saw it. I glanced at the others before peering at the symbol. It was that Greek Mars symbol, but with four lines quartering the circle like a target.

Dumag carefully pulled the gauntlet off the corpse with reverence. “A divine gauntlet. Or at least, a very convincing replica.” He gasped.

I glanced at Brokil and Bruga quizzically, silently asking them to fill me in. When they didn't, I asked outright. “What's a divine gauntlet?”

Brokil pointed at the piece of armor as he explained. “It is an item forged by the god Kremthu himself. He only bestows them on the worthiest of warriors. That is his symbol and is one of reverence within Snakhagr.” I nodded skeptically as I looked back at the gauntlet. “Right, they still have a very superstitious world view. They probably think he walks around. . . I'm going to feel really stupid if that's actually the case.”

I pointed forward with my sword as I stepped in front of Dumag again. “Then grab it and let's push further. We still have a key to find.” I was interested but unimpressed by the find. One gauntlet seemed paltry compared to the contents of the archive and I was eager to get inside. Dumag nodded as he slowly stood and placed the gauntlet in his bag. We pushed further in as I scanned the tunnel for more moving statues. Our footsteps echoed along as we walked, making it the only sound we heard for a few more minutes. I stopped as our light suddenly revealed one of those moved statues in front of us, running away from us and deeper into the tunnel. I turned to the others as I pointed at it. “Exactly like that. There were two more back in the throne room. I'm pretty sure they were called upon by something further in.” Brokil and Dumag nodded as they stepped forward to examine the statue. I joined them as Bruga squeezed past. This statue had just a battleaxe and tribal leather as armor. I stepped to peer through the faceplate while Brokil and Dumag examined the body itself. I squinted as I noticed something glinting somewhere above its eyes.

I squatted slightly to identify it but stopped and turned as I heard Bruga calling from behind us. “Dexter! I Believe I Have Found Where The Statues Were Traveling To.” I squinted as I peered into the blackness and tried to see Bruga. I raised my light higher when I couldn't see far enough and quickly realized another curtain of blackness was just a few feet in front of me. Bruga’s hand emerged from the curtain and beckoned for us to follow. Brokil, Dumag, and I stepped forward to follow Bruga through the curtain and into a scene that was . . . interesting to say the least. We stepped into a room and was immediately met with another sunstone, this one only a few feet in diameter and hanging like a disco ball about thirty feet up. We were standing at the top of a wooden staircase, looking down at the room below. Beneath the sunstone was a frozen spectacle of battle, one where it seemed that only one side was present and in position. Dozens upon dozens of statues stood frozen in place, some about to strike while others defended with shields. The rubble of fallen statues filled the places where intact statues weren't standing.

I let out an amazed “Holy shit.” as we took in the sight. We all continued to look around as we paused before cautiously descended the stairs. I immediately noticed alcoves in the surrounding walls and took note of the fact that all of them were barren. There were also a few trees in the corners of the room and a doorway leading out the back. Another curtain of darkness seemed to occupy the doorway, shielding the tunnel beyond from our sight. Amazingly, the trees were still alive and vibrant, the light seeming to be enough to feed these four plants deep beneath the mountain. What was most interesting was one corner of the room. The back-left corner was unusually clear, devoid of statues, rubble, or disturbances of any kind, except for a twisted mass of wood sprouting from the tree in the corner. We reached the bottom of the steps and started looking around curiously, the statues remaining frozen as we traveled. “Anyone here have experience with magic that could do this?” I asked hopefully. The other remained silent as looks of confusion gaze at each of the frozen figures.

Brokil ran a hand along one of the statues before giving it a gentle push, causing the figure to sway back and forth for a moment. “No manner of tome in the Institute would reveal this marvel.” He muttered as he looked about the room. “There is no lingering incantation as far as I can gather. We have already discovered far more than any have before. These curtains of void were unknown to us before now.”

I nodded as I looked around, trying to reason out the purpose of these positions. “Someone must have attacked,” I remarked, approaching one of the statues. “It might have been why the city was abandoned. If you had to fight something that could withstand an army made of stone, I wouldn’t want to stick around either.”

Dumag nodded and growled as he shoved a statue, causing it to topple over and crack on the hard floor. “Such cowardice would not be honorable, but it would be the only means of survival, as brittle as these fighters may be.”

I nodded as I turned to the doorway at the far end of the room. I was intrigued by the mass of wood at the corner, but couldn’t see anything noteworthy about the area. “Let’s explore further then. This might not be where all of the statues are.” I lifted my foot and stepped over a fallen statue, a loud crunch sounding as I set my foot down. I lifted my foot again to see what I had stepped on and spotted a splatter of dull white shards, just big enough to fit in my palm. I crouched to inspect the shards and noticed they were different from the stone surrounding them. The grey rock that composed the warriors were nowhere near this hue or vibrancy. I reached out to grab one of the shards when, out of the corner of my eye, I noticed a faint glinting. I turned to look and spotted something shiny embedded in the mass of roots.

I furrowed my brow as I stood again and pointed towards the cleared corner “What's that?” I asked, the area now holding a gentle mystery. The others turned and watched me approach the eerily barren section of the room, trailing behind me as I inspected the mass. The shape of a fist slowly came into focus as I walked. Fingers frozen in a firm fist as it pointed towards the stairway. I eventually got close enough to recognize another gauntlet, this one frozen in the air by one of the trees reaching out and seizing it. I glanced towards the back wall as I noticed a spider web crack emanating from it. I recoiled a bit as I saw a second skeleton, this one missing its jaw and wearing another yellow shawl only this one was fluffy and unaffected by decay. “Jesus Christ,” I muttered, placing a hand on my mouth in surprise. I glanced at the gauntlet as I noticed a now-familiar design of runes and gemstones. It was almost identical to the gauntlet we had just found, save for the hand each armament appeared to be intended for. I turned to Dumag as I quelled the uneasy knot forming in my stomach. “I'm assuming there are multiple gauntlets?” I asked as I turned to Dumag.

Dumag’s eye grew wide as he stepped forward and saw the gauntlet. “Impossible.” He muttered. Before I could react, Dumag turned and grabbed one of the weapons the statues were holding, another battle-axe, and ripped it free. I jumped back in surprise as he raised the weapon and brought it slamming down on the tree, splitting the wood and causing the gauntlet to fall in an explosion of splinters. I watched as it fell as if in slow-motion and caused a nearly imperceptible pulse as the gauntlet hit the floor, the wind rippling as it landed. I shook my head as I chalked it up to the adrenaline rush from seeing my teacher wield the weapon so suddenly. Meanwhile, Dumag practically pounced on the gauntlet and began examining it. He quickly flipped the armor over and inspected the inner forearm, tracing what much have been another emblem. “It is not.” He said, shaking his head. He sounded disappointed and somewhat relieved.

I let out a sigh as I stepped forward, intent on finding out what else was left behind. “Alright, then what is-” crrrr I stopped as a low rumble suddenly emanated around the room, with the loudest rumble coming from behind. crack crack crkcrack I slowly turned as the sounds of cracking gradually filled the room, like stone grinding on stone. Dust descended from above and caused a precarious statue to topple, breaking with a lout Boof on the floor. I stared in horror as I looked above the staircase we had entered from and realized what was going on. Nested in the wall above us, standing at least fifteen feet tall, was another statue. This one was special, the only one of its kind as far as I knew and nestled in an alcove that towered where it was carved. The statue decked out in actual metal armor and carrying the biggest hammer I'd ever seen, its handle as long as it was tall. Dust and grinding emanated from the construct as it appeared to glow and struggle to move. With one last crCrCRCRACK the statue flexed and the whine of sliding metal replaced the rumbling. The statue was no longer struggling to move. Instead, it’s head slowly turned down to stare at the room, turning it’s expressionless visor to us as we stood, frozen, in the corner of the room. As we watched, the statue slowly lifted its leg and stepped off the ledge, crashing into the stairs below it with a loud BOOOOM and crushing our means of escape. One vulgar thought shouted in my mind as the statue lifted its other leg to take another step. “YOU'VE GOT TO BE FUCKING KIDDING ME!”