Into the Deep
We were ready to go. The supplies were packed. One backpack per person. I was dressed in a good pair of hiking jeans and a long-sleeved shirt borrowed from Sabreur's closet. Mine were all too girly for a trip underground. It was one Sabreur wasn't too fond of, as I had to cut slits in the back to allow for my wings. My backpack rested in between the two which made folding the snowy white eyrie wings a bit difficult. I managed though.
Terraile carried a pack with her quiver of arrows slung down to her side. Her bow was in her hand. Un-eairkagh had also moved his Sinsis Sword from his back to the side of his backpack. His dark battle duck hung from a belt alongside his green scorchstone. His gait had changed a bit, he now kind of swayed from side to side from the weight on his back. MoonFall was the last to show of my crew. She had braided her mane and tail into countless smaller braids. Her mane was tied close to her neck to keep it out of the way and her tail had been folded to shorten it considerably. Her backpack was actually just saddlebags. I helped adjust them as her request, refraining from commenting about her hair.
"I wanted it out of the way," she said softly at Un-eairkagh's inquiring look.
"No, that's understandable," Un-eairkagh replied, "But why are you wearing that?"
I looked at my uni again. Resting on her brow was something I'd never seen her wear before. A slim gold coronet with a diamond set in the middle.
"It's the Fallen Crown," my uni said with her head down, "Passed from queen to queen in my family for ages. The diamond is said to have fallen from the sky. It will light up with a word from someone of royal blood. I thought it might come in handy underground."
"You're probably right," I replied, casting Un-eairkagh a glance meant to keep him from asking MoonFall anymore questions.
I knew she disliked her ancestry.
Sabreur and Infernus were the next to arrive. My brother was dressed in a long sleeved shirt and hiking boots. His rapier was on his belt along with a couple of his improved firebombs. A harness across his chest held more weapons, throwing stars mostly and a couple more improved firebombs.
"The stars burst into light when you throw them," Sabreur explained, "They're kind of like a flare. I've got a couple of those too, on the side of my pack."
A single orb was hanging off the back of his backpack and I assumed that to be the Halogen 3000. Infernus stood nearby, his sword also on his waist. He was armed the same as Sabreur and the two looked strangely like twins.
Sakuko and Netsuko were next, Sakuko carrying just her backpack and Netsuko a backpack and bow. Melody and her three pets arrived shortly after. Melody carried a walking stick that would easily double as a staff and Padiglione wore dual daggers strapped to her front legs. Her three pets, not being hampered by wings, were able to wear a special kind of backpack, one designed for four legged creatures. It was two packs that strapped around the pet's middle and rested on the sides instead of the back. It provided for balance unlike Un-eairkagh's pack which was firmly between his wings.
"We ready?" I asked softly, tightening the straps on my own backpack.
Everyone nodded. I smiled grimly and led the way out to the cars.
There were many entrances to the Neopian underground. One of the closest was the Catacombs in Neopia Central, but that one wouldn't take us to the tunnels we needed. Instead, we took a cave system near Kiko lake. The entrance was amidst a cliff bluff near the lake. I took my car off-road to get as close as possible before we left it behind. I found a secluded area partly obscured by trees and underbrush and parked there.
"Will it be okay while we're gone?" I asked my brother.
"We will if you put it on auto-protect."
He flipped a switch and all but two computers shut down. The hum of the engine faded to just a slight buzz.
"There. Nobody will dare touch your car now."
"I pity the first person who tries," Melody murmured.
I walked towards the cliff bluff, leaving the car behind. Everyone followed. We found the cave entrance with little difficulty. It was a narrow opening behind an outcropping rock. I managed to squeeze through with little trouble. Un-eairkagh had some trouble and Padiglione made smart remarks about him gaining weight.
"Watch it or I'll buy you a bib and bottle," the eyrie retorted sharply.
The baby kougra merely sniggered and showed all her pointy teeth.
It was only a few feet before the light from outside faded. Sabreur activated his Halogen 3000. The surrounding area was quickly illuminated by soft white light. Our shadows were cast in vivid relief against the gray walls. Lady MoonFall spoke a single word of power and her coronet flared up with a gentle yellow light, providing more light and eliminating some of the shadows we cast. I led the way, my Elemental Spear in hand. The going was hard as I had to take it slow. My spear cast it's own light and I traveled with the point low and close to the ground. The floor changed levels suddenly and at times the walls and ceiling took sharp twists.
"Would not be a bad time to mention I have a touch of claustrophobia?" Un-eairkagh said in a tiny voice.
"Yes," Melody, Sabreur, and I said in unison.
Time lost all meaning in the darkness. The tunnels would widen and narrow, at times being wide and tall enough for us to walk four abreast, at other times so small we had to go single file on our hands and knees. Sabreur had mapped out a route to take us close to the area where Aldrai had dove into the earth. From there, I would lead.
After what was probably several hours Sakuko called for a rest in a large cavern. I found a spot where the rock sloped and dropped my backpack, laying out on the gently inclined surface. Others found similar resting places and collapsed. Sabreur placed his pack in the middle of the cavern and turned the power on the lamp up some. The walls were illuminated and the shadows banished. All around us were stalagmites and stalactites. The wall themselves were inlaid with crystal at several portions which glittered with black and purple in the light.
"I wonder if anyone has ever seen this place before," Terraile said in a hushed whisper.
"I imagine so. It is on the maps after all," Sabreur replied, "But we will be hitting areas that no one has ever seen in a couple days."
"It kinda makes you feel small, doesn't it," Un-eairkagh said in a strained whisper, "Like you're invading this place. And the silence…it feels like it's just watching you."
"Don't think about it," Netsuko said sharply, "You'll go mad if you do. Just don't think about it."
No one really talked much after that and I eventually decided it was time to move on. We had at least one more day of travel before we reached the place where Aldrai fell.