"We're almost there!" Qirandri called out excitedly, as she saw the base of what was once a small statue, beside the overgrown path, one of the few remaining signs that indicated the presence of the ruins she sought in the otherwise thick jungle. She was certain that if the recent rain had not impeded her travel by making the ground muddied, then she would have already arrived at her destination, leaving Qira somewhat discouraged.
Nevertheless, she consoled herself with the knowledge, that her coat had kept her fur dry, even if the intricate braids of her hair had come undone in the rain, though she was more fortunate than Kaljei, who was unlucky enough to get caught before the newest layer of the tattoo dyes had time to set, leaving him without their traditional tribal fur markings.
Focusing back on the task at hand, Qira began moving quickly along the path, trying to reach the ruin quicky. But in her rush she leaned too heavily on her cane causing it to almost slip atop the mud beneath her, but Kaljei caught her mere moments before she found herself face first in the mud.
"Hey, careful now! We can’t have you getting hurt again, not before we get there." He let her go with a sigh, though Qira wasn't quite sure what the problem was. He didn't seem annoyed with her at the very least and she was fine, so it didn't seem like a big deal. She didn't get much chance to think about it before he continued talking. "I still don't even get how you convinced the elders to let you go on this excursion.
"I asked. Well- that and I also said I wouldn't share it with the Cannonball Trade Company after their recent trouble up north." Qira replied, calling back to recent news about several company ships and their crews suffering from the Veiled Scourge. She knew it occurred at times, but she had never heard of it happening this much, which she judged to be a bad sign.
Qira didn't notice what Kaljei said next, her attention shifting as she brushed a dew covered leaf to the side, unveiling the stone facade of the ruin before her. The pair now stood before the stone steps, leading up to a door larger than any they had seen before. Easily ten feet tall, gargantuan compared to the pair of Amrilni, with several boulders that were once part of the structure now laid in pieces in front of it, preventing the door from being opened. The rest of the ruin stretched upwards into a partial tower, with a considerable chunk of it being little more than overgrown rubble. Assessing the ruins, Qira swiftly determined it was the place they had been looking for. Vines enveloped large sections of the worn stone walls, thriving with the rainstorms that frequented the archipelago this time of year.
She moved forward after just a few seconds, her tail grabbing Kaljei's wrist to snap him out of his daze. She never got why people took that long to look at things, but that wasn't important at this moment to her. What was important was getting inside the tower. "Come on! Let's get in!"
The door didn't budge for her as she attempted to pull it open, and as she put more weight to it, her grip slipped from the wet handle and she landed on her butt, much to her chagrin. Kaljei began to giggle, but taking some pity on her, he offered a hand. "How about you slow down a little? You know the agreement. You get hurt, you go straight back to the boat. I got this." The Amrilni scolded her lightheartedly, hoisting her back onto her feet with little effort.
"Fine..." Qira grumbled as she stood back and sat down on the stone banister. She didn't like it, but she didn't have much of a choice. At least she had the joy of watching Kaljei moving the rocks out of the way before he began to investigate the door. It wasn't locked, just very heavy. Qira knew that much from when she tried to open it herself. Shaking the door loose enough to open is something that took even Kaljei a few minutes to do. In the end he had to take the handle and put his foot on the other side of the door, to get enough leverage to pull it open with a loud, scraping noise that made Qira's ears fold back. When she looked back up again afterwards, she saw that Kaljei had managed to pull it open enough for them to pass through, though just barely.
Kaljei walked in first, having to check it was safe before Qira entered. She didn't mind it, knowing their agreement, but she really just wanted to go and see the place for herself, which she soon got to. Qira barely held herself back until he called out to her that she could enter, but as she did she found the sight was far more underwhelming than the rich interiors she had anticipated.
The first thing she noticed was the sudden drop in temperature compared to the humid heat outside, with the smell of rotting wood accompanying it soon after. It was to be expected, but still not something she was used to. The room itself was circular, with planks forming the floor; or what was left of it. Large chunks of it was missing, with the holes only revealed by the sunlight coming through the cracks and holes in the walls. A few empty shelves lined the walls, likely looted long ago when the tower was abandoned, Qira guessed.
They both then began slowly moving further inside, both having spotted the remains of the stairs going to the next floor. They didn't make it more than a few steps before Qira threw her arm out in front of Kaljei, nearly slamming his chest to stop him. Her ears swirled as she noticed something was amiss. The floor was evidently unstable, but even this close to the wall she could hear it cracking beneath them. "Careful, the floor won't be able to support us."
It was spoken quickly, but Kaljei seemed to understand, taking a few steps back to the door to look over the situation again. "But we won't find out anything about the place either, if you can't get around. Hrm..."
He looked around alongside Qira as she tried to come up with a counter, though she knew he had a point. "All we have to do is just to check if there is anything in the tower. Somehow..."
Her thinking was interrupted as Kaljei put a hand on her shoulder and pointed up to the ceiling. "I can climb up and check the next floor. If there is something, then I could hoist you up there with the rope. That way we won't have to turn back already."
Qira thought for a moment about it and looked over the room again. She didn't quite like to leave it out of her own hands, but it was better than nothing. After a second longer, she nodded to Kaljei. She knew she could trust him, after all, she wouldn't have gone here with him if she didn't.
Kaljei took a good look around after she gave her approval of the idea, likely determining the best way to climb. Not something Qira was all that good with anymore given her leg, but Kaljei? She would have been more surprised if he couldn't find his way in this overgrown mess. It wasn't long before he began scaling the vines and plants clinging to the walls. Not all of them were holding perfectly but they were sturdy enough to give him a safe route up to the next floor. Qira could hear the wood creaking under Kaljei's weight, which began to make her wonder what might be up there, and how he would secure the rope. She would find out soon enough, as a rope unraveled down through the hole. Qira tied the rope around herself, making sure she was completely secure before signaling Kaljei. She made certain to hold her cane tightly, when he began to hoist her up, with her good leg occasionally pushing her away from the wall so she wasn't dragged across the plants. She wasn't sure what to expect, but what she saw still surprised her
The remnants of the circular room that came into view, appeared to have been built with a focus on a central lectern, where she could faintly make out old runes that were inscribed into the stone supports. The patterns in what remained of the floor appeared to have been etched to have small cavities. No doubt with the intent to put something in them, though being made of wood it hardly seemed like it was meant to be water. Powder or dye perhaps? Beyond this, a few shelves remained hanging to the walls, but what caught Qira's eyes were old desks, chairs, even benches. It was without a doubt a room that was meant to be used frequently, daily if she had to guess, even if barely anything remained. She just couldn't make out what purpose it served. It didn't look like a library, the shelves didn't fit the standards for any books she had ever seen. Scribes maybe? But that wouldn't make sense with what was in the middle. Perhaps a-
"I wasn't expecting to see a ritual chamber here." Kaljei commented under his breath, earning a brief but surprised look from Qira, she hadn't even considered that. After all, this isn't a place she would have thought of as having been somewhere an elder would go. On the other hand, she could see the resemblance. Not quite the same as back in the tribe, but it was similar. Except the lectern, that appeared out of place compared to what Qira was used to. Perhaps the text would reveal more, though she didn't feel quite as certain about it. Regardless if it would or not, there was still the problem of reaching it. The room below had already proven itself unstable, though she had to admit that the stonework up here must be quite a bit heavier than either she or Kaljei ever were. With slow, measured steps, she began to feel her way across the floor. Keeping an eye, ear and feeling out for anything that might indicate the floor's instability. She reached the lectern's small podium safely, and after taking a good look at it, she sat with a big grin aimed at Kaljei.
"I'll go grab our things and set up the camp. Don't get injured while I'm gone." Kaljei shook his head at Qira, waiting to see if she would be okay, before he climbed down the hole in the floor to get their things from the boat.
It suited Qira just fine, as she began rummaging through her satchel to grab her journal, some paper, and a stick of coal so she could make a quick copy of the lectern's text. While not perfect, it would work in case she had to leave in a hurry. Afterwards, she began to copy the text into her journal meticulously and at a slower pace, to get each word and symbol correct. Carefully, she sat down on the podium, taking out more notes and books from her satchel to compare them with, but she noticed they seemed to not quite match her previous notes. All of it was just what the elders had permitted her to see however, so maybe they had more. She could never be certain with how reluctant they were about examining the old ruins that are under their purview.
She focused on the notes, the work was far harder than she had anticipated, though it was also the first time she had to work without any translations to check if she got it right. As far as she could gather, it was something about an old protection ritual. She could not manage to figure out what it was for however, before Kaljei called out to get her attention. She hadn't even noticed that he had returned and set up the tent near the walls of the room.
"Qira, come on already. Your food is getting cold at this rate and you have been staring at that paper for hours." It was true, as much as she did not want to admit it, she did need help to translate it. Maybe one of the elders could help her, but that was not for now. She packed away the journal and papers in her satchel and looked over to Kaljei. The smell of the stew was delicious at that moment, so she was thankful that the old chimney was still intact enough for them to have a safe place for the cooking fire. Kaljei poured the stew into a pair of bowls as she walked over to him and sat down on the bedroll inside the tent. He offered her one and she gratefully took it.
"Any luck with whatever it is?" He looked at her for a moment before giving his attention to his own bowl.
"Not much. The text is similar to the other ones that the elders let me see. The start is similar, it speaks about the protection and shielding of the area, I presume it's either the tower or island. I still don't know what though. It isn't pirates or the sea, else it would read differently." She replied, with Kaljei offering a shrug in return. Qira glanced out of the tent and through one of the holes in the walls, where she noted the approaching skies for herself. Rain. It was more warning than she expected but it was nice to bring down the heat. They idly chat as the rain soon start to fall and intensify outside. Most of it remained there, but with the holes in the walls they both knew it would be wiser to remain in the tent until the morning. Saying their goodnights, the pair would eventually settle down to sleep for the night.
