Chapter 24.

The

Flames

Among

Water;

Arch I,

Part I

ME: Okay, this chapter was originally supposed to be the prologue but it didn't really FEEL like it being such so here we are with Chapter 24!

With these chapter, I'm bringing back a character you, sort-of, know from Chapter 21: "The New Assignment", I believe, if you don't know him, perhaps you should go and re-read it.

Anyways, I only own the character mentioned so far . . . Sort of.

Please read and enjoy!

"Some nights I stay up cashing in my bad luck,
Some nights I call it a draw . . .

Some nights I wish that my lips could build a castle,
Some nights I wish they'd just fall off . . .

But I still wake up, I still see your ghost,
Oh, Lord, I'm still not sure what I stand for, oh . . .

Whoa, oh, oh . . . (What do I stand for?)
Whoa, oh, oh . . . (What do I stand for?)

Most nights I don't know anymore . . .

Oh, whoa, oh, whoa, oh, whoa, oh, oh . . .
Oh, whoa, oh, whoa, oh, whoa, oh, oh . . .

"Some Nights" – F.U.N.

~X~

Drip, drip, drip . . . Plunk!

Drip, drip, drip . . . Plunk!

Drip, drip, drip – PLOP!

Sea green eyes narrowed at the goblet-sized drop of water that practically drenched their owner's head, making his bangs sticks to his face. Sending a glare at whatever source above him, he shook his head, sending droplets of water flying into the air.

A light flickered from the left side of his head, a small static-like noise making itself known before – "SKRRKKRK- Iego? Keg, Oi! You there? Can you hear me, hombre?"

Large, grey fingers tapped lightly at the same spot before "Keg" replied, "Yeah, Jess, I can hear you; sorry, the frequency got a little dicey around the lower levels of this place."

The voice, or "Jess" on the other end gave a tired sigh. "Si, I kinda figured. Any problems down there?"

Claws dug into cold, moist rock, easily seeking out and grabbing into footholds as the massive weight they bore pulled himself farther and farther up, never missing a beat as he spoke, "Aside from the signal interference, no. It's pretty calm down here so far. No strange claw marks, no nests, no signs of territorial claims; I think we might get out of this one without visitors this time."

"Man, ya better not have just jinxed us." Jess warned, his accent becoming heavy with a low growl.

Keg's long grey snout smirked at that, like what he had just said was an old joke. "What are ya talking about?"

"The last time ya said that, we ended stirring the hornet's nest! And by hornet's nest, I mean, that nest of cannibal harpies where you swore that that duchess's tiara was!" Jess pointed out.

Keg gave the voice a noticeable eye-roll before stating, "We did find it, didn't we? Harpies, like many birds do, have an attraction to shiny things. That nest was the most logical place to look."

"Logic don't grow back the fur that those loco brujas ripped it out." Jess shot right back.

"Well, you can relax this time; unless we're dealing with Penguin Avians of some sort, I doubt we'll have a repeat of the Root Island Case." Keg reassured him, taking a glance around him.

"Right. If it's all the same to you, I'm not gonna hold my breath, just to be safe." Jess drawled into the man's ear.

Keg rolled his eyes. Normally, he would've made a joke at the expense of his partner's past experience with cannibalistic avains. But considering the current thought that it was probably some time after midnight and Keg was certain that said partner would've come right down after him with his claws at the ready, he decided not to push it.

He wasn't entirely joking. The cavern was as cold and as vacant as the dead of night, excluding the man climbing its jagged, asymmetrically slanted walls and the echoing sounds of meticulously dripping water. The only real signs there were that showed any life existing were the mollusks that clung and wiggled on the damp, rock walls and the few tell-tale signs of moss growing laboriously slow on whatever part of the surface it started from. Its walls curved into a high, rough ceiling of stalagmites, some of which nearly as wide and big as the soul scouring the cavern. The only way in and out was the small pool of sea water that stood still and silent below him, save for when a drop of water splashed onto the surface, creating ripples that went just as quick as they came, disturbing his reflection.

"Back to the subject at hand, any sign of that artifact Darrell told us about?" Jess asked.

Keg made a small noise of inquiry, one of his massive hands coming off the wall and brushing against the wall, feeling the miniscule pebbles and paper-thin skins of water shift beneath the tips of his sharp claws. "No, nothing yet . . . So far, I'm not seeing any signs of deliberate disturbance here."

"Deliberate disturbance?" Jess repeated. "Like what?"

"Well, you know, like uhm . . ." The claw on his index finger tapped against the wall as he contemplated his response. ". . . Like a sign that someone had been here before. Something like carvings, shifted rocks, a writing of some sort. Anything to show that something's out of place. But like I said, everything looks relatively normal."

"So, what, what are you saying?" Jess asked, his tone bordering on accusation. "That we're back to square one; some allegation by an old man who's near old enough to be in a home?"

Keg shook his head, even though his currently absent companion couldn't see it. "No, no, I think the Professor was on to something. I've been feeling something off about this cave since I came in."

"Off? Off, how?"

"Off like something's just waiting to spring out. Like it's waiting to catch me off-guard so it cane make it's move."

"And you CHOOSE to tell me this just NOW?!"

"It didn't matter until now!"

"Didn't matter until – May I remind you that I'm the one freezing his arse off and getting drenched with every each passing wave that decides to take a shot at me, while you're down there playing hide-and-seek with a most likely possessed artifact that Darrell sent us to fetch like some lapdogs just so he can screw us over AGAIN!" Jess's accent become heavier with each word he sounded in his rant, adding a heavy enunciation at the end of such.

Keg was clearly used to this as he once again sighed placidly, "You think everyone is trying to screw us, Jess. "Which you know they do"!" The last part he spoke perfectly in sync with his colleague, as though he had been hearing it for years with no end. "Don't be so paranoid, Jess." He admonished, his hands once again feeling around as he squinted in the dark. His sharp eyes took in the texture of the cavern walls and made note of the cool stone as he went on, pressing hard with his palm. "It's not uncommon to find some sort of magic lingering to an antique or anything of the like. I mean, just take a look at that package that we –"

VRRT!

"Whoa."

"Whoa what?! What? What is it?"

Keg didn't answer right away. He was too busy staring at where his hand was sticking halfway through the supposedly solid rock wall, a space that rippled as though it had been disrupted by a rock. A rather odd tingle was left on his hand as he pulled it back out with a pop.

He flexed his fingers. All five were still there. That was a good sign.

"Keg?! Hello?!" Jess's voice was sounding close to frantic as he heard it ring in his ear canal.

"Oh, yeah. Sorry, Jess." Keg replied even though he didn't sound sorry at all, turning his gaze back to the same odd spot on the wall. "My mind was somewhere else."

Jess seemed to know what face he made with that tone as he then added, "Which means . . . ?"

Keg gave a small smirk. "Which means I think I just found my deliberate disturbance."

"Oh good. Which is?"

Keg made sure to keep his touch light this time as he pushed against the spot. The strange barrier billowed lightly, feeling weightless and but clingy like a bed sheet as it stuck to his fingertips. "It looks like an illusion spell; it doesn't really seem to be strong enough to hold against my hand when I pushed through it the first time. Whoever set this must've made it decades ago for it to be this weak."

"So what are the chances of what we're looking for still being there?" Jess asked, as though he knew the answer and wasn't going to like hearing it out loud.

Keg fell silent.

He could hear the audible clicks and cranks of his mental gears already go to work in his head.

His earlier guess had been right; somebody had been in the cave once before, most likely dating back to maybe twenty to forty years' at best.

The illusion magic as he had stated was quite weak since it did nothing to keep him from touching it once more, indicating that anybody with either a strong or weak magic rank could slip their hands or wings or claws or whatever through quite easily without trouble. That could've been narrowed down to a possible degradation over time . . .

Then again, maybe the person had very impractical magic training for it to be so flimsy and impotent? Either way, the barrier could've just as easily give to anyone if any of such were given the opportunity.

Then again, he didn't find anything that showed signs of disturbance from the outside. There was no damage to the walls or no pieces of any possible equipment lying about. He also didn't detect any new scents that had been here for at least a few weeks when he had been closer to what ground there was . . .

". . . . . . . . Uhh . . . I'd say about fifty-fifty." He finally stated.

"And those are our best odds?" Jess responded, not sounding at all happy with that answer.

"Pretty much."

Jess made a sound of annoyance. Keg could already see him rubbing a paw over his face. ". . . Fine. Go and check. You own me ten gavottes if you have the wrong odds."

"Copy that, partner." Keg said simply before doing just as ordered.

The tingle vibrated against his skin like a hornet as his hand dove right back inside the barrier. The magic didn't hurt but made the bones of his wrist feel as though they were being rubbed together with chalkboard erasers as moved his huge appendage around inside. Regardless, Keg pressed on with his tongue sticking impishly out of the corner of his mouth.

Whatever space was in there, it was tall enough to wave his hand back and forth but his thumb and little finger still felt pressed against the rest of his fingers from the shallow sides closed in on them. The hole definitely felt man-made because the sides were too smooth to be made by years of erosion. Keg figured someone must have made it with long arms, since his hand was now deep inside for the tingle to spread up to his elbow. The rock was as dry as the outside of it was damp, definitely a sign of magic being at work here. At least he didn't have to worry about this artifact being wet . . .

The tip of his index claw touched something. Whatever it was wiggled in place for a brief second before coming back against it. "Ah-hah . . ." Shoving his arm all the way up to near the armpit, Keg felt the object's shape fill his palm before wrapping his claws around it and pulling it back out.

The artifact was small, nearly covered completely by his claws; it was as light as a child's toy ball yet felt as solid as a rock. At least from what Keg could tell from the thick fabric that encased it. He could feel a bubble of warmth seeping through the fibers, humming in his hand like wisps of steam curling from a pot of boiling water. The magic around it was still thriving despite it literally sitting in a cave, for how long Keg could only guess.

Jess's voice crackled in his ear. "Como? You find it?"

A large toothy grin adorned the man's face, with teeth in no ways the shape or size of a human's. "Oh yeah, I think I found it."

A sound of annoyance but relief sighed on the other end. "Bueno, about time!- ACK! I just got drenched AGAIN . . . . Get your leathery arse up here before I catch pneumonia!"

The hand holding the artifact brought it down to his side and carefully placed it inside the side-pack on his hip, making sure the flap was secured shut. "Alright, Jess, alright. I'll see you topside, over and out." His fingers tapped the side of his head again, dimming the light and silencing the leftover crackle of the now silent voice.

With that, the man simply took a deep breath of air, held it in with a gulp and let go of the wall. His large body twisted into an almost perfect swan dive, slipping soundlessly into the pool of water and leaving the cavern behind.

Fifteen minutes went up and started to count down as a timer in his head a split second later. He had to hurry. No wasted time.

Under the water's surface, a bowl of rock greeted him, almost surrounding him with rigid walls all churning and falling into a dark blanketed hole only three feet below him. Keg scowled at the size of the hole. He had forgotten how much of a problem it was getting through it the first time.

Ah, well. He had fourteen minutes and twenty-seven seconds left, no time to be squeamish with small spaces. That said, he swam forward, the large fins and massive tail swinging behind him, propelling him onward and into the hole.

He kept his head cool and his breath within his throat by keeping note of the time, his huge muscles and stature squirming and thrashing into the water and into the thick enclosed walls around his head. Fourteen minutes and ten seconds, fourteen minutes and three seconds . . .

Thirteen minutes and forty-five seconds . . . Thirteen minutes and thirty-one seconds . . . Thirteen minutes and eleven seconds . . . One paw was out, now the other . . . .

Thirteen minutes and two seconds . . . Twelve minutes and –

Keg grunted as both his arms practically popped out of the other side of the hole. They were bent at awkward angles and crossing stupidly with one another until finally, with a more than a little elbow grease, they straightened out and the hands attached gripped the rock around them and pushed. He swore that his face felt as squished as canned peaches as his arms squeezed his face with the force he was trying to use to get out.

Sometimes it really sucked being as big as he was –

FWOOSH!

Ahh, that was better! Keg would've sighed with relief if he didn't know it would drown him.

A calm smile adorned his face. His upper body was now halfway through the hole, giving him more than enough elbowroom so that he could comfortably rest on his arms against the rock and look around. As usual, the now paradisaical sea took no mind at yet another odd creature that entered its realm and went on as it always did; just going with the flow.

The pressure of salty water on Keg's face was a delightful familiar, the ocean moving against his face with no mind to him as always and shifting his hair all around his head like an octopus would move its many tentacles. He'd take this over that tiny hole of closure hell any day. The salt was no enemy to his eyes as he peeked around at whatever there was to see.

Tiny white fish swam in schools as perfectly as a flock of birds above him, albeit a tad quickly at the sight of him.

A pink and white Yunity clicked playfully as it flipped and paddled near the calm surface of the ocean, shimmering and horn gleaming as it swam back and forth, sending waves up towards the world above it.

A couple of crabs, scuttling like the bottom feeders they were, picked at floating algae bubbles and waving seaweed with massive, meaty claws from their spots on the sandy sea floor.

The sea had never felt so peaceful. Everything was perfect. Why, even that submarine that was bumping and scraping against the underwater caverns like a mad sea otter with a stomachache was –

Wait.

Keg whirled his head around and his eyebrows went straight up in surprise. Huh.

The chrome finish of a Penguin Model submarine practically glared in the dark waters as it boomed and banged against whatever unfortunate solid surface was in its way. Seeing what mayhem it caused was like seeing a small metal ball bouncing around in a glass cup. Keg fought not to cringe each time the sub stuck to the cliffs long enough to give ear-aching scraps that echoed far into the deeps. He could almost feel his teeth shudder from the sound.

All the sea creatures present scattered and flew into wild strokes of their own like they couldn't get away fast enough as the submarine either blew past them or nearly right through them. As Keg observed, the Yunity hiccuped in fright before hiding behind a rock boulder not yet touched, the schools of fish disappeared into specks of colors like shooting stars, and the crabs buried themselves deep in the sand in an attempt of camouflage.

Keg didn't blame them. Whoever was driving that thing was either drunk or right out of his mind.

Only a fish-head would let himself get stuck while a sub was going haywire –

He blanched. He looked down at himself. At the part of himself still stuck in the rock wall.

Oh no.

All level-headed finesse and calm breath-holding was gone as Keg begin to struggle; wiggling and twisting his torso in any way he could, bubbles and water flying in erratic waves from the manic force in his tugs and pulls.

This was not good. This was not good! This was not –

VMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM!

Keg looked up. The apparently crazed submarine shot at him like a torpedo, the nose aiming straight for him as it swooped in.

Oh, streg–

KA-BOOM!

ME: Yikes! That's going to give me nightmares . . . Not to mention that's going to look horrible on the sub's finish.

Anywho, until the next chapter!