Instinct told me to keep my head down. I shouldn’t make eye contact with anyone. Nor should I draw attention to myself, but I couldn’t help but look up. Now that I was at the bottom of the long staircase, it looked even longer and more intimidating than before.

My boots clacked softly with my first step. Strangely, it was the only thing I could hear. The noise of the busy bustling city had seemed to disappear as soon as I had stepped onto the staircase. To steady my nerves, I began to count the stairs. The depth of each stone was quite wide, and on some occasions, I was forced to place both feet on a stone before I could reach the next step.

A gust of wind swept up the stairs from behind and little swirls of dust began to dance on the steps beside me. Other people and beings climbed the stairs as well, each in their own thoughts or conversing quietly with a companion, while others passed as if they were leaving. Still, no sound reached me apart from the noise of my boots on the stone. No one spoke to me or heeded my presence. Each being seemed consumed by their own journey up and down the forbidding stairs. At one point I had to stop to catch my breath, suddenly feeling dizzy. It must have been the heat from wearing so much clothing.

Vibrations started to rumble down from the entrance of the temple and over the steps. It was low, reverberating over and through me. I could not only hear it. I could feel it as well. I reached for the stone banister for support, only to feel vibrations rumbling through it as well. Somewhere, deep within the walls of the temple, either musical instruments were being played or a choir was singing, for a haunting willowy tone now reached me, making the hairs on my arms rise.

I dared not look behind me in case I lost my nerve and ran back down the stairs. It was with blind confidence that I believed Rayon and his men were following at their own pace.

After five agonizing flights of steps, I reached the open double doors. On either side of the stairs, large, golden bowls, larger than what my arms could wrap around, sat on the ground. They were guarded by four large Phalean guards standing on either side. Tokens, similar to the ones Rayon had given me, filled their contents. I dug my hand into my pocket and pulled a couple of the ones Rayon had handed to me and did my bidding. They clanked loudly on the side of the bowl, but the Phalean guards did not thank nor stop me.

I continued and stepped over the threshold. Instantly, the hot and stuffy air within overwhelmed me, evening giving no reprieve from the heat that had accumulated throughout the day. The smell of sweaty flesh, medicinal herbs and burning incense turned my stomach. A heavy energy also fell upon my shoulders, pressing down heavily on my chest, but as quickly as I felt it, it repelled off. I could sense its presence though, hovering all around as I walked. Whatever that energy truly was, I did not know. Suppressing a shudder, I continued.

Braziers burned beside each stone column that lined at intervals along the main walkway. The ceiling was high and dark, light unable to reach its surface, but above Rayon had told me another four floors were open to pilgrims.

There were smaller pathways leading off the main stone trail. Individuals sauntered and mingled, some bowing on the ground, others standing and swaying with their arms in the air. In one alleyway, three humanoid figures, grey and skin to the bone, lay in rags before a shriveled woman who danced inside a circle formed by bowls with what looked like blood.

A man with rotting teeth jumped in my path and cackled, opening his mouth wide. He had piercings through his lips that looked rusty and his breath smelt dreadful like stale vomit. His clothes and body odor seared my senses further; cheesy and stale. Gagging, I side-stepped quickly and rushed past him, guilt flooding through me. My instinct was to stop and help, but my focus had to be on finding the dagger. Unknown words called out and his feet slapped on the ground. Picking up my pace, I broke into a jog. He must have been sick as well for he gave up and disappeared into another dark corner.

A new strong aroma reached me. It smelled floral in nature, but it was rotting, dying and decaying. A naked, female statue towered above me with white stone that stood out against the darkness. She cried with visible tears staining her face. How was that possible? My gaze fell to a woman lying at her feet, rocking and sobbing with something small wrapped in fabric cradled in her arms.

I turned sharply. I wasn’t ready to confront the possibility of her pain. Everything in this place wreaked of death. The energy continued to pulsate above, threatening to pull me in as well and suck me into the horror and agony of this place. My life had always been easy. I was one of the fortunate ones. I wasn’t prepared for this, and another flood of guilt washed over me. Surely, there was something that I could do to help these wounded souls.

Something cold and rough clasped around my wrist. My gaze shot down to find another young man, similar in age to me, had wrapped his long, thin fingers around my skin. He was blind, his eyes covered in an orange stain. His features were similar to the Phalean with his nasal tubes twisting along the outside of his face. He lacked the hairstyle I had seen on the others, however.

He mumbled in another language, and then all of a sudden, out of the fog, the chip translated his mumbled words.

“Trust not the ones who say they help

A dark, powerful magic awaits to rule

If you come across this story on Amazon, it's taken without permission from the author. Report it.

Power in the four will be your truth.”

Aghast, I yanked my hand free. His mouth formed sounds unfamiliar to my ears, the words he had spoken already lost to him. He turned away as if I had never been there. I twisted sharply and breathed a sigh of relief.

In the middle of the first floor, just like Rayon had told me, a large, wide stone staircase allowed an individual to reach the second floor. Without another glance over my shoulder, I raced towards them and ran up the stairs. This time my boots didn’t make a sound as I sprinted around its spiral formation. It was large and wide, at least three meters long.

The second floor was a large, open hall, and I took a moment to take it in. Here I could spy that the third and fourth floors looked down over from an oval balcony high above. There were shrines scattered throughout this floor as well, but it appeared to be organized in its layout unlike down below. Along the wall, arches were spread out and inside each one was a small area containing a statue. Here, only three or four people sauntered and walked from one archway to another.

It was then that I noticed the ruby, red light ebbing from the back of the large, open hall, illuminating and reflecting off the stone walls from behind another staircase that led to the balconies up above. Rayon had told me it was at the back and towards the left. Not wanting to delay any further, I strode across the hall in the direction of the light. And then, I remembered and stopped. He had told me to stay in the shadows. Was that because someone could be watching me?

I turned and faced one shrine and pretended to give it all my attention. Flowers, incense, household goods had all been left inside these areas for each deity. Did every kind of illness have its own shrine that a person could visit? Or were these statutes representations of the deities that this world believed in?

I had no idea what to do, but I sunk to my knees and straightened some of the flowers on the ground before me. At the same time, I used my peripheral vision. Was I being watched? Were those other people mingling around guards of some kind?

Slowly, I turned my head and gazed over my shoulder. There wasn’t any immediate sign that there were any Phaleans on patrol here. I gazed up to the balconies above my head. There was movement as the occasional person walked along, but they were casual and not Phaleans nor dressed as the Phalean soldiers outside.

Satisfied, I rose to my feet, however, I heeded Rayon’s warning and instead of walking straight down the middle of the hall, I kept to the edges of the arches where darkness gathered at intervals.

The ruby glow continued to get brighter and brighter. When I approached the staircase, I crossed to its shadows and walked at its base to reach the back.

Before me, stood two large shrines. Another white stone statue of a woman stood before me, but this time unlike the one I had seen downstairs, she was fully clothed, her body covered in chiseled layers of rock that represented the flowing material of her dress and long cloak. One of her hands rested on the sword at her hilt while the other was outstretched to the stone mantel in front of her where the glow of ruby emitted from.

My heart leapt, and I took a step closer. Was that the Ruby Dagger?

Behind her, down the back wall, water flowed down in a continuous waterfall. The female statue was on a platform and the water spilled into a moat that surrounded and protected where she stood. The water had a cooling and relaxing effect, but it was dark and looked deep. Who knew what lurked underneath? I would have to cross it though to get a better look and to take the dagger in my hands.

Transfixed, I stared at her facial features which were set in eternal despair as she looked towards the shrine beside her. On the opposite side, a male statue stood poised looking back at her. He had the same look of despair on his features, and in front of him, the mantel was empty. There was no dagger in his shrine. One of his hands also rested on his weapon at his hip, but unlike the woman, his other hand was reaching out towards her.

They looked like two lovers who were unable to reach each other.

So close, and yet, forever apart.

A noise, a cough, from high up above startled me back to my task.

The Ruby Dagger for Shane and Nate.

I did not have time to wonder at the story behind these two shrines. My job was to get the dagger.

My eyes fell onto the red glow, so bright I still couldn’t get a clear view.

I edged closer, my throat dry, again. It was right there, in front of me. All I had to do was step over the moat and take it. Nothing was holding it down from what I could see. I glanced down at my arm.

Something crawled up the back of my neck, prickling my skin and causing goosepimples to rise. Why hadn’t Rayon taken it? It was right there! Why hadn’t anyone else taken it for that matter? I didn’t see anything that would be possible to stop someone from taking it.

‘Only the person with the ruby vambrace.’ I remembered Rayon’s words.

Judging the distance, the moat was about a metre wide. It would be an easy jump. Was there something in the water that would stop a person? I peered into the water. It rippled gently, but even standing over it, I still could not see what lay beyond its surface.

A crash came from somewhere behind me, and I jumped. Spinning, I held my breath, expecting someone to come running towards me to yell and scream that I was in the wrong place and that I should leave. A shadow off to the right caught my eye. A person moved with fluid motion into the shadows, waiting. Was it Rayon or one of his men?

Without further delay, I turned back to the female stone statue and rushed forward. With one simple leap, I crossed the moat and landed on the platform next to the statue. I gave her one last glance, admiring her beauty and the craftmanship in creating her, before I turned to the red glow.

Here at this distance and from my new angle, I could see the dagger clearly. Rayon was correct. As soon as I saw it, I knew it was the right one. Resting in two stone grips on the mantel, its entire length was the same as the distance from the top of my fingers to my elbow. It resembled more of a small sword than a dagger. My eyes were drawn to the shiny ruby scorpion that wrapped around the section of the dagger that divided the grip and the blade. It was exactly the same as the scorpion on the ruby vambrace on my arm. The red glow seemed to be coming from the pommel of the dagger.

I lifted my hand and reached out.

Time stopped.

I sensed the person before I saw them. I just didn’t know where they were coming from. A shout came from behind, and from the corner of my eye, I spied them. Turning around, a fluttering of movement like the flapping of wings was surging towards me. I looked up. It was the ends of a dark cloak as a person soared through the air. Dressed in black from head to toe, including their face, they flew through the air heading straight towards me.

I looked back to the Ruby Dagger and snatched it up, and then the hall around me went dark.