Chapter 22 The Valley of the Dead
As the sandsea ends it carries on into a small gorge that opens up into a full blown canyon. Once Raithwall himself lead a tiny elite force against the armies of the barbarians here. No it was a simple domain of the dead bodies, some of which hadn't stayed dead. The Valley of the dead. An appropriate place to bury the king at the site of his greatest battle. As the small group traversed the rocky gorge the younger members looked around uneasily.
"Maybe this wasn't such a good idea?" Suggested Penelo, "I hear there are skeletons and even zombies here." Balthier shrugged.
"I've dealt with such creatures before and know exactly how to make even zombies lie down and play dead." He assured her. Vaan was unconvinced.
"I heard you can't kill them, even if you chop their heads off they still snap at you." He stated blankly. Ashe sighed.
"Yes, let's discuss all the various ways a zombie is a difficult opponent while we walk through the valley of the dead shall we?" She fumed silently.
"Everyone!" Penelo shouted, her voice echoing off the rocks. She had just rounded the next bend in the canyon and an awesome sight met her eyes. In the center of the gorge lay an enormous building, it's black stone walls reflecting the sun. It looked like a palace for all it's splendour and yet lifeless and rather dreary for the final resting place of the dynast king. Balthier whistled.
"You royals certainly like to die in style." He commented. "Imagine the funeral." Ashe ignored him and approached the structure.
"Who was king Raithwall anyway?" Vaan questioned. "I know he did some stuff to do with seperating our borders..."
"King Raithwall, is the reason we are here." Vossler repremanded sternly but Ashe silenced him.
"Long ago the gods granted favour to king Raithwall, who would oversee the subjugation between Ordalia and Valendia." She explained. "Here he defeated the last of the barbarians and forged the Galtean alliance. Though called the dynast king, he was famous for compasion to his people and distain for war. A phillosophy past on to his successors that would bring peace and prosperity for hundreds of years to follow." She looked up proudly after finishing, only to find that the group was halfway up the stairs. "No respect for higher powers." She grumbled, trudging up the stairs after them.
"Well, we've traversed every inch of this mortuary." Balthier huffed a few hours later. "And I think we can now be certain that there is no door." As the sun set over the horizon the group sat down heavily outside the building.
"If we can't get inside then how do we get this dawn shard?" Vaan asked. Vossler shook his head.
"All I know is if we don't start back in two days our supplies have no chance of holding for the journey." He growled quietly.
"Why are we here again?" Penelo piped up. Ashe sighed.
"Basically." She said heavily. "Raithwall left behind him three stones of great power. Two he gave away but one he kept and even had it buried with him. It's the proof I need for my royal lineage." The girl nodded blankly. Unable to stand the atmosphere Vaan rose to his feet.
"I'm going for a walk." He said moodily. Penelo followed him.
"Me too." She said. Vaan protested for an instant, then remembered there was no way to stop her.
"Come on then." He sulked. As the sun descended behind the ridge it seemed as though the tomb became part of the background, just another rock. And Vaan had to climb the stairs to convince himself it was still their goal. When the two orphans reached the top, they looked at the old wall. Covered with carvings though it was, no door was visable.
"Do you think this is how Raithwall wanted it?" Penelo asked, breaking the silence.
"Do you think he wanted his treasure hidden away forever?" Vaan shook his head.
"No, he just didn't want to hand it over to anyone. Someone who could get inside would have to be a great person." He leant against the wall and kicked at a stone sticking out of it.
"Vaan, it's getting dark." Penelo said. "Let's get back to the others." But a rumbling sound interupted her, the entire building seemed to be shaking. Then she saw it. The stone Vaan had kicked wasn't there anymore. Suddenly a section of the floor opened up, both children jumped at the noise and stood motionless as from out of the darkness rose a small obelisk with a lantern like device on the top. Then the shaking stopped and the rumbling ceased, and all was calm and still. Penelo was the first to speak.
"Woah."
"Thats the best you can do?" Vaan joked. She scowled.
"Let's see you do better." She retorted, Vaan shrugged.
"Fine I will." He said. And as the last bit of light vanished he reached out and grabbed the lantern, Penelo lunged forward to drag him back.
"This would be one of those things you think about before you do!" She hissed. "Now, let's get back I can't see a thing." Vaan touched her arm to silence her, or what he thought was her arm.
"What do you think your grabbing?!" Penelo spat.
"Sorry." Said Vaan sheepishly. "I can't see any better than you." He gingerly removed his hand from whatever part of Penelo he'd found and walked back in the direction of the stairs. His foot found a solid stone wall. Puzzled, Vaan tried another direction. Only to find the same result. It was only then, when he began to think about it that he realised something.
"Penelo. Does the air seem different to you?" He asked cautiously. There was a scuffling noise to his left and Penelo's voice answered.
"It tastes dry, almost stale. Hang on." There was a moments pause before her voice cut through the darkness again. "Seriaf flau den ordir!" Nothing happened.
"Wow." Said Vaan sarcastically. "What a show." Even through the darkness he felt her glare piercing him.
" It must be because I don't know all the words yet. " She complained. "Seriaf flau den ordir!" The darkness was suddenly broken. Tentitively at first but quickly growing, a small fire sparked into existance in mid air which brought Penelo's grimace into vision as she fought to keep it in place.
"Put it there and stop squinting." Vaan said gesturing to the lantern, "The look doesn't suit you." Penelo was too tired to argue. She carefully manouvered the precious fire into the lantern, where it burned an etherial yellow.
"I thought you didn't need all the words to use magick." Vaan asked his exhausted friend, she had only been doing this sort of thing for a couple of days.
"Yes but I need at least most of them to come anywhere close to a result." She said testily. "And if you'll look around, I'd say we have bigger problems." As Vaan surveyed the scenery he knew she was right. Where they were now certainly wasn't where he thought they were. They were in an enormous stone structure, centuries old by the look of it. They were on a platform at one end of a bridge across a giant chasm which faded down into the blackness. Vaan whistled as he looked around.
"Well, thats not good." He said, Penelo grabbed his arm.
"But how can we be here?" She stammered, her voice cracking. "We were just outside, and the lantern is still there." And then it hit Vaan like a ton of bricks.
"We're inside the tomb." He said softly.
"What?" Breathed Penelo.
"Don't you get it?" Vaan said incredulously. "That lantern we found must be the doorway into the tomb."
"But thats ridiculous." Penelo cried, though her face was uncertain.
"Sure it is." Vaan sneered, and began to walk across the room.
"Don't leave me here." Penelo yelled, her voice echoing around the room. Vaan sighed and turned back.
"Look, you can either stay there and be alone or you can come with me and find this dawn shard everyone's looking for." Penelo hesitated, then realised there was no way of stopping Vaan. Grudgingly, she left the lantern and set off.
I'M BAAAAAAAACK. Yeah, sorry I took so long, I've been kinda busy with auditions. But now I'm back and can regularly update. Woohoo.
