|
|
Post by Nako on Sept 2, 2008 16:36:26 GMT -5
Oh come on, that couldn't be the way! With a sigh, Zuberi sat down on the ground for a short while, putting her paw in the water to bring it back up to splash herself in the face. She was used to Midori heat, but that didn't necessarily mean that it couldn't effect her if she spent her time climbing laboriously up a cliff face.
Standing back up, she pulled the canteen she had in her backpack and filled it at the river, drinking of the lake herself before putting the canteen into the pack. Next was a rope. She tied one end to her waist and put the rest of it on her shoulder. If she needed to ground herself for a moment to rest, she didn't want to have to struggle with bringing a rope out when she was hundreds of feet off the ground. Taking in a deep breath, she came up to the rocky face and began to climb.
|
|
|
|
Post by The Jenn on Sept 2, 2008 17:47:09 GMT -5
It was a bitch of a climb, especially in the thick heat and with the sun baking down overhead. The incline wasn't so steep that she couldn't brace her legs and stand in some places, but once she got to the last few dozen feet it became hardest as she had to scale the steepest part of the rocks to reach the top of the dip.
When she finally managed to pull herself up the last foot and peer over the edge of the rock, a beautiful view awaited her of a lake bowl surrounded on the edges by rocks and, in some places, stubborn and hardy trees. The lake shown blue-green in the bright sunlight and there were birds flying all over, many of them the varieties that preferred cliffs and resided higher on the spires.
Once she was at the top of the dip and had peered directly over the edge, she would notice something odd below and to the left of her...
...stairs. Carved into the stone and leading down.
|
|
|
|
Post by Nako on Sept 2, 2008 18:03:38 GMT -5
Zuberi gave one last heave, lifting herself up between the two spires. At first the merely lay there, catching her breath and pulling her canteen out and taking a swig. It was the sound of a loud, trilling bird that drew her attention toward the inside of the crown.
"Migad!" The exclamation came out as hardly a whisper as she looked at the sight before her. It was gorgeous... but it was the stairs that then drew her attention. Standing up, she regained her composure and made her way to the steps, taking an experimental step on the first one. Finding it solid, she began to make her way down the long line of stairs. Obviously this had been the right way to come up, and she was terribly glad that it was. She didn't know if she had the strength to go down a cliff face just yet!
|
|
|
|
Post by The Jenn on Sept 2, 2008 18:18:24 GMT -5
The stairs were shallow but stable and unusually straight, suggesting that they'd been made by someone's magical ability rather than carved by hand. The surfaces looked as though they had been perfectly smooth at some point, though wind and weather had worn at them over the centuries. One or two had chunks missing out the side, but these were easy enough to hop over. The slowly winding and lowering stairs took her nearly halfway around the lake until at last they ended... at an opening that looked natural and unassuming, but for the stairs that had led her to it. A natural cave at just above water level...
Inside there was condensation on the walls, water slowly sliding down. It was immediately cooler once Zuberi was out of the sun, though the humidity hung just as thickly. The tunnel was unlit beyond where the light of the sun would reach and looked like it continued a short ways before turning.
|
|
|
|
Post by Nako on Sept 2, 2008 18:25:08 GMT -5
Amazing. Zuberi could only be in awe as she took the stroll around the huge bowl. It was... surreal to say the least, and the stairs.. there was no way someone had manually carved each and every one. They looked so old...
The entrance she came to though, was decidedly hewn by nature's hand. Her hair stood on end as she walked inside. Something about this area... was unlike any place she had ever been. It was important, and Zuberi felt that maybe her journey was coming to an end. It was exciting, yet frightening all at once. What if she found nothing? What if she found... Everything? She shivered at that, walking into the dimly lit cave. There was a bend, and it was becoming harder to see. Then she paused, looking behind her back before continuing.
Make well sure ye're alone..
In her haste, she was nearly forgetting the warnings of the map. She hardly thought anyone would have followed her, but still...
|
|
|
|
Post by The Jenn on Sept 2, 2008 18:36:16 GMT -5
No one had followed her, luckily. It hadn't seemed an interesting enough journey for anyone to take notice, especially going to as inhospitable a place as she was and at such an ungodly hour.
As she continued into the cave it became pitch black and she was forced to light a candle before continuing. The light was minimal, but provided enough visibility for her to avoid running into any walls. After about three minutes of walking along what she could assume was the edge of the lake bowl, she reached the 'end' of the path. Quite literally, it was a dead end... with the exception of a small part of the river she'd been following peeking through a part of the floor. It was above the level of the water and left about a foot of space, though it could be assumed that the tunnel flooded during particularly rainy times of year. The hole looked mildly suspicious, as if it had been made.
|
|
|
|
Post by Nako on Sept 2, 2008 18:45:07 GMT -5
Zuberi found herself at a dead end, and for a moment she was disheartened, until the glimmer of water caught her eye. She paused, kneeling down and setting her candle to the side to look. The hole was very particular, seeming too smooth and perfect to be made by nature. The round! She pulled the stone out of her pack, as well as the paper that held the words she needed to say. Slowly, she set the stone within the hole, allowing it to sink into the water.
Her blood roared in her ears, unfolding the paper to read from it in the candlelight. "Eva ne' lorum, calliaghau tor.." She licked her lips, which suddenly felt so dry. Her eyes closed only for a moment, and her mouth opened once more. It was as if... she put all into that last word... all of hear heart and soul.
"Pinkbeard.."
|
|
|
|
Post by The Jenn on Sept 2, 2008 19:07:30 GMT -5
The heavy stone slowly sunk into its place beneath the opening as the words left her lips. The last word, his name, almost seemed to linger in the air as the atmosphere thickened. The humidity suddenly became almost suffocating, as if a blanket were pressing itself in against the lungs, and a scraping sound rumbled along the 'dead end' as a panel of stone slowly sunk into the floor. The map's maker had guarded his treasure well.
Gleaming dully from the meager light of her candle, the cavern beyond shone with the reflections of the flame against piles of coins. Here and there, the twinkle from a gemstone could be seen peeking out. It was a veritable trove of riches, the swag from many successful hauls and attacks against fat merchant vessels that had taken advantage of cheaper transport by water at the time... or had tried to until they'd been waylaid. It was a relatively small room, no larger than your average bedroom, but the floor was littered with coins an inch deep.
In the corner of the room sat a large wooden chest, bound with iron as reinforcement. There appeared to be no lock.
|
|
|
|
Post by Nako on Sept 2, 2008 19:19:31 GMT -5
Zuberi gasped, trying to breathe as the atmosphere changed. Had she done something wrong? Was the whole cave about to collapse on her? Protecting her candle from the dripping water, she cringed on the floor as she steeled herself for what was about to transpire.
The wall gave way in front of her. Now... should she have seen that coming? Standing up, she walked into the room, seeing nothing but darkness as she drew closer. Something clinked against her foot. Looking down, her jaw dropped. The floor, was made of gold? No.. it was merely covered.. in gold dubloons! There was just... so much of it. It was more riches than she'd ever seen in her life! Pinkbeard certainly was a successful pirate!
There was a duller glint; she'd seen it by chance before it wasn't there any more. It took walking closer to the source to see the old weathered trunk. A pirate always put his best treasure in a chest! Everyone knew that! Setting down her candle, she checked for a lock. There was none. Obviously getting through the obstacles was enough of a deterrent. WIth trembling hands, her paws reached out to lift the lid....
|
|
|
|
Post by The Jenn on Sept 2, 2008 19:57:27 GMT -5
The chest was a heavy beast, for all that it only came up to an average biped's knee. The lid swing open only with 'persuasion', straining anyone's arms to heft the thing up. It was very weighty and opened with the creak of long-unused hinges that needed oil. The wood was an inch thick or more, not even counting the iron bands. This was a chest for protecting things.
Inside were several extraordinarily valuable items, including a gold necklace dotted with gaudy rubies and emeralds, and diamond as large as an apple sitting in the corner. Neither of them were enchanted, but the resale value would be unbelievable. There were several other high-end pieces of jewelry and large gems lining the edges of the box, just waiting to be dug through. Sitting in the middle of them all, however, was... a coronet. A bone coronet. Smack in the center of everything.
|
|
