10th Fragment: -DESERT-
[Somewhere in the Desert of Ashes]
Gray as the storm clouds, the mountains of sand bleakly stood before them -- a stark contrast to the clear sky above the trio's heads. Sam leaned down and grabbed the hot, gritty sand off the ground -- watching silently as it gradually turned glittering gold. "This is the Desert of Ashes, alright," he murmured before turning to Lucy, who had already switched on the Projector.
With the aid of the holographic map, the trio could see their destination marked with a flickering red dot. "Lizzy's cabin is a 10-minute walk from here. If this coordinate was correct, it should be," Lucy points to her right, "That way."
"Wait, what is that?" Rupert gestures at a small red cross -- northwest of the cabin.
"Hm, I'm not quite sure. The ruins, perhaps? Lizzy is a Tarantula Hawk, so maybe she was assigned to that location?" Lucy said with a shrug.
“Ruins? Of what?”
“A long-lost civilization from the early days of the post-cataclysmic era,” Lucy began her explanation. “It is rumored that they created a device that could conceal their entire kingdom from any form of detection. Needless to say, the Order took a great interest in the technology and has put the Tarantula Hawk in charge of finding documents and relics which could help in recreating the rare contraption.”
“Huh, that’s…interesting. How do you know so much about the…uh…technology?” Rupert replied while scratching his chin.
Lucy exhaled; she felt slightly sad looking at her clueless brother. “You’ll be surprised with how much reading can benefit you. You know what? Maybe it could save your life someday.”
“Me? Reading?” the elder Nightingale let out a short burst of laughter. “Sorry, I’ll have to pass on that one. You know me, I’m more of a doer than a thinker.”
“RUPE! HOLD IT!” Sam suddenly exclaimed, causing Rupert to stop dead on his track. The vermillion-eyed man shoved his friend aside before drawing his katana – pointing it toward a black, cactus-like growth on the ground.
“The heck is that?” asked Rupert.
“A Sand Urchin,” Lucy answered. “A nasty little fella. Once it clings to you, it will be nearly impossible to get them off.”
“And…what if you can’t get it off?”
“Well, for starter…it’ll start to multiply until it fully envelops your body. Then, this thing will suck up all of your nutrients, turning you into a prune.”
“Oh,” was the only thing Rupert said before he slowly took a few steps back from the Sand Urchin.
“But, unless you got one sticking to you, it poses no threat whatsoever. As a matter of fact, it plays a significant role in this type of biome.”
“We don’t need to worry then,” Sam retorted before sheathing back his sword. “So back to our main goal: find out about Elisabeth’s whereabouts and bring her home. Let us pray she’s still in the realm of the living.”
“Sounds good,” Rupert muttered. “But, what if she’s…not?”
“Then, we follow the standard protocol: bring her body – or what’s left of her – back to the Tower for a proper burial. Though, I doubt she already kicked the bucket.”
“Huh, what makes you so sure?”
Sam gestured at the whole desert with both of his hands and said, “This entire place is still standing. If Elisabeth is dead, she will drag this desert down with her to the bottom of the ocean.”
qs********************************************
[Meanwhile…]
[Inside the Chamber of Convergence, Tower of Nexus]
"Plotting something again, are we, Markus?" said Marie as soon as the bearded man walked into the Chamber of Convergence.
"Ouch. You're treating me like some sort of crook, Miss Strelitzia," Markus chuckled. "How were my apprentices doing? I'm hoping they didn't cause you any trouble."
Placing her hands on her hips, Marie took a quick look at the archway and recalled the expressions worn by the trio before they went through it, "Disconcerted – every single one of them. Putting them in that position is uncalled for, particularly Sam."
"You know pretty well that Thomas' words are final," Markus calmly replied.
"And that is what worries me," said Marie, crossing her arms together, "So? How may I assist you this evening?"
Markus glanced at the main entrance, ensuring no one was coming in. "I have a little favor to ask."
"A little favor, you say? It must be super important then if The Captain of the Deathstalker himself is asking for my help."
"Important enough that Thomas will have us both executed if he finds out about it," Markus said grimly.
Marie squinted her eyes, wondering what the man was planning this time. Then, it suddenly hit her.
"Oh no, you did not do what I think you did? Please tell me you didn’t use your Chronokinesis in a reckless manner?"
"Of course not!" Markus lashed back, "Well, at least not when someone is around."
The woman sighed, shaking her head in disbelief. "Fine, I'll help you out, but in exchange for some favors of my own."
"Name it," said the Captain of the Deathstalker, brimming with confidence.
"Promise me you’ll stop using that skill of yours – the one where you can catch a glimpse of the future. And…"
“And?”
“Your wife’s famous puff pastry. A dozen of them by tomorrow.”
Markus emitted a short laugh, "Sure. You have my words."
**qs******************************************
[Meanwhile...]
[Desert of Ashes]
Made exclusively from pinewood, Elisabeth's small lodging was surprisingly still in pristine condition, even after being exposed to the harsh climate of the desert. The trio wasted no time pushing the front door open and carefully went inside the cluttered building. To their surprise, the two-story cabin was fitted with amenities such as a bedroom, a pantry, and also a reader's corner. Sadly, the coziness of the entire space was ruined by the scattered papers and books.
"Strange," Lucy stated, "The place is a mess and, yet, the door and the windows are still intact."
"Could it be that Lizzy knew who the perpetrator was? Ooh, perhaps they are one of us?" Rupert said playfully.
"No, that would be improbable," Sam told the elder Nightingale before picking a black leather-bound book off the floor. "For the last seven days, Elisabeth was the only person reported to have traveled between here and the Tower. Other than that, the Desert of Ashes is practically uninhabitable. The last known settlement was destroyed by a giant sandstorm 20 years ago." After finishing his explanation, Sam wiped the sand off the book he recovered before putting it back on the shelf.
"Hm, I don't know. I mean, don't you think this whole room is kinda weird? I was expecting blood smears or some signs of struggle. There's nothing here except for some old books and useless scraps of paper. Pretty darn suspicious, don't you think? " Rupert spouted.
"Are you implying she's doing this on purpose? That's preposterous, to say the least,” Lucy lashed back.
“Well, it’s not like there wasn’t any case where a Faceless tried to desert the Order. Not to say that Lizzy will do it, but of course, we can’t dismiss the possibility, right?”
“Rubbish!” Lucy snarled. “She would never do that. Lizzy herself told me that the happiest day of her life was when she was officially inducted into the Order.”
"No, Rupert raised a good point," Sam interrupted, "Not the desert part but about the room." His glinting, vermillion eyes surveyed the entire area, searching for something specific. "Elisabeth is a Tarantula Hawk, right?"
"Yeah," both Lucy and Rupert answered at the same time.
"Then, she was supposed to have a space dedicated to her studies. A workshop of some kind," Sam shifted his attention to the virtually empty shelf. "Guys, pick up the books and arrange them in alphabetical order," the Nightingales immediately did as they were told.
Eventually, each slot was quickly occupied until they were left with a single gap. Sam took a deep breath before he inserted the last book.
CLICK!
A keypad suddenly popped out on the left side of the shelf, that upon further inspection, seemed to be a six numbers combination lock.
"Okay, now what?" Lucy grumbled.
"Her birthday, maybe?" Rupert grouched, scratching his head.
"Close. The date of her induction into the Order. When was it?" Sam asked.
Lucy swiftly replied, "2nd April 1001, if I remember correctly." After hearing those dates, Sam inputted 020401 with the keypad.
DING!
The shelf slowly split open, revealing a hidden staircase leading into the basement. "Dude," Rupert was so stunned he could not even come up with a witty remark.
"How did you know that was the code?" asked Lucy, sharing the same baffled expression as her brother.
"You said the day Elisabeth was inducted was the happiest day of her life. So, it's highly possible she used the date for the code. Thanks for that, by the way," Sam cracked a little smile.
"S-Sure. No problem," Lucy stammered, blushing at the unexpected compliment. "Anyways, let's head straight down," the flustered woman rushed toward the stairs while trying to hide her bright red cheeks from Sam and her brother's eyes.
****qs****************************************
As they anticipated, the workshop was more spacious than the whole cabin upstairs. Various equipment was arranged neatly around the room -- each was powered by the solar panels fitted to the roof of the building.
Numerous bookshelves sat at each corner of the basement, storing research journals dating back to the first year of the post-Cataclysmic era.
Being an avid reader, Lucy could not contain her excitement when she saw Elisabeth's awe-inspiring collection of books, "Oh my God, could it be…? All of these are about past civilizations! Let’s see…The Dominion of the Eagles, the Country of the Lone Iron Tower, and there's also one about the Underwater Cities!"
"Sheesh, of all the things to get yourself worked up," Rupert muttered, rolling his eyes out of boredom.
"Who can blame her? She didn't even have the chance to visit the Grand Library since our return from the Wailing Forest," Sam then patted the elder Nightingale on the back, "Let's leave her be and look around. Oh, and don't break anything."
Then, the two men roamed the area together, inspecting each cabinet and machine -- hoping to find some kind of clue.
"Ah-choo!" Rupert sneezed, "Lizzy should really clean this place up. I can barely breathe in here."
"Well, you're one to talk. I do remember a certain someone got himself kicked in the rear for not tidying up his bed," Sam responded with a sarcastic tone.
The next thing he heard was a burst of laughter, followed by Rupert saying, "Fair play, dude. Fair play."
The duo continued their search quietly until something caught Sam's attention. On one of the worktables was a slab, with wave-like symbols carved on its surface. He noticed brushes of different shapes and sizes next to them, alongside a small sticky note filled with scribbles. The only words he could make out of it were 'Jewels' and 'Tree' while the rest were crossed out, either out of frustration or on purpose. However, what bothered Sam the most was the writing – it felt somewhat familiar to him – as if he saw them somewhere before.
"Hey, guys!" the female Nightingale called out, "You might want to see this."
Shortly after the trio regrouped, Lucy instantly showed them a page from a brand-new journal. "This was written...three days ago," Sam mouthed before he started to read the recent entry out loud:
[0700]
[An overnight sandstorm has revealed a stone structure resembling a crypt entrance -- northwest of the Base. Initial analysis indicates that the architecture predates all of the Four Major Kingdoms. But there are also traces of electronic components, suggesting a later addition by an unknown party. Nevertheless, the excavation was postponed at 1230 due to a sandstorm. Further investigation is imperative to determine the origin of the electronic components.]
"Northwest? Isn't that the red cross we've seen on the map earlier?" Rupert interjected with his eyebrows knitted together.
"That seems to be the case," said Lucy as she gently closed the journal, "What do you guys think? Maybe Lizzy is somewhere near the ruin?"
Sam held his chin, both eyes completely shut as he mulled over the new piece of information. After some time, he looked at the siblings; both were already aware of what he was about to say, "I'm afraid there's only one way to find out."
10th Fragment: -DESERT-
[Somewhere in the Desert of Ashes]
Gray as the storm clouds, the mountains of sand bleakly stood before them -- a stark contrast to the clear sky above the trio's heads. Sam leaned down and grabbed the hot, gritty sand off the ground -- watching silently as it gradually turned glittering gold. "This is the Desert of Ashes, alright," he murmured before turning to Lucy, who had already switched on the Projector.
With the aid of the holographic map, the trio could see their destination marked with a flickering red dot. "Lizzy's cabin is a 10-minute walk from here. If this coordinate was correct, it should be," Lucy points to her right, "That way."
"Wait, what is that?" Rupert gestures at a small red cross -- northwest of the cabin.
"Hm, I'm not quite sure. The ruins, perhaps? Lizzy is a Tarantula Hawk, so maybe she was assigned to that location?" Lucy said with a shrug.
“Ruins? Of what?”
“A long-lost civilization from the early days of the post-cataclysmic era,” Lucy began her explanation. “It is rumored that they created a device that could conceal their entire kingdom from any form of detection. Needless to say, the Order took a great interest in the technology and has put the Tarantula Hawk in charge of finding documents and relics which could help in recreating the rare contraption.”
“Huh, that’s…interesting. How do you know so much about the…uh…technology?” Rupert replied while scratching his chin.
Lucy exhaled; she felt slightly sad looking at her clueless brother. “You’ll be surprised with how much reading can benefit you. You know what? Maybe it could save your life someday.”
“Me? Reading?” the elder Nightingale let out a short burst of laughter. “Sorry, I’ll have to pass on that one. You know me, I’m more of a doer than a thinker.”
“RUPE! HOLD IT!” Sam suddenly exclaimed, causing Rupert to stop dead on his track. The vermillion-eyed man shoved his friend aside before drawing his katana – pointing it toward a black, cactus-like growth on the ground.
“The heck is that?” asked Rupert.
“A Sand Urchin,” Lucy answered. “A nasty little fella. Once it clings to you, it will be nearly impossible to get them off.”
“And…what if you can’t get it off?”
“Well, for starter…it’ll start to multiply until it fully envelops your body. Then, this thing will suck up all of your nutrients, turning you into a prune.”
“Oh,” was the only thing Rupert said before he slowly took a few steps back from the Sand Urchin.
“But, unless you got one sticking to you, it poses no threat whatsoever. As a matter of fact, it plays a significant role in this type of biome.”
“We don’t need to worry then,” Sam retorted before sheathing back his sword. “So back to our main goal: find out about Elisabeth’s whereabouts and bring her home. Let us pray she’s still in the realm of the living.”
“Sounds good,” Rupert muttered. “But, what if she’s…not?”
“Then, we follow the standard protocol: bring her body – or what’s left of her – back to the Tower for a proper burial. Though, I doubt she already kicked the bucket.”
“Huh, what makes you so sure?”
Sam gestured at the whole desert with both of his hands and said, “This entire place is still standing. If Elisabeth is dead, she will drag this desert down with her to the bottom of the ocean.”
qs********************************************
[Meanwhile…]
[Inside the Chamber of Convergence, Tower of Nexus]
"Plotting something again, are we, Markus?" said Marie as soon as the bearded man walked into the Chamber of Convergence.
"Ouch. You're treating me like some sort of crook, Miss Strelitzia," Markus chuckled. "How were my apprentices doing? I'm hoping they didn't cause you any trouble."
Placing her hands on her hips, Marie took a quick look at the archway and recalled the expressions worn by the trio before they went through it, "Disconcerted – every single one of them. Putting them in that position is uncalled for, particularly Sam."
"You know pretty well that Thomas' words are final," Markus calmly replied.
"And that is what worries me," said Marie, crossing her arms together, "So? How may I assist you this evening?"
Markus glanced at the main entrance, ensuring no one was coming in. "I have a little favor to ask."
"A little favor, you say? It must be super important then if The Captain of the Deathstalker himself is asking for my help."
"Important enough that Thomas will have us both executed if he finds out about it," Markus said grimly.
Marie squinted her eyes, wondering what the man was planning this time. Then, it suddenly hit her.
"Oh no, you did not do what I think you did? Please tell me you didn’t use your Chronokinesis in a reckless manner?"
"Of course not!" Markus lashed back, "Well, at least not when someone is around."
The woman sighed, shaking her head in disbelief. "Fine, I'll help you out, but in exchange for some favors of my own."
"Name it," said the Captain of the Deathstalker, brimming with confidence.
"Promise me you’ll stop using that skill of yours – the one where you can catch a glimpse of the future. And…"
“And?”
“Your wife’s famous puff pastry. A dozen of them by tomorrow.”
Markus emitted a short laugh, "Sure. You have my words."
**qs******************************************
[Meanwhile...]
[Desert of Ashes]
Made exclusively from pinewood, Elisabeth's small lodging was surprisingly still in pristine condition, even after being exposed to the harsh climate of the desert. The trio wasted no time pushing the front door open and carefully went inside the cluttered building. To their surprise, the two-story cabin was fitted with amenities such as a bedroom, a pantry, and also a reader's corner. Sadly, the coziness of the entire space was ruined by the scattered papers and books.
"Strange," Lucy stated, "The place is a mess and, yet, the door and the windows are still intact."
"Could it be that Lizzy knew who the perpetrator was? Ooh, perhaps they are one of us?" Rupert said playfully.
"No, that would be improbable," Sam told the elder Nightingale before picking a black leather-bound book off the floor. "For the last seven days, Elisabeth was the only person reported to have traveled between here and the Tower. Other than that, the Desert of Ashes is practically uninhabitable. The last known settlement was destroyed by a giant sandstorm 20 years ago." After finishing his explanation, Sam wiped the sand off the book he recovered before putting it back on the shelf.
"Hm, I don't know. I mean, don't you think this whole room is kinda weird? I was expecting blood smears or some signs of struggle. There's nothing here except for some old books and useless scraps of paper. Pretty darn suspicious, don't you think? " Rupert spouted.
"Are you implying she's doing this on purpose? That's preposterous, to say the least,” Lucy lashed back.
“Well, it’s not like there wasn’t any case where a Faceless tried to desert the Order. Not to say that Lizzy will do it, but of course, we can’t dismiss the possibility, right?”
“Rubbish!” Lucy snarled. “She would never do that. Lizzy herself told me that the happiest day of her life was when she was officially inducted into the Order.”
"No, Rupert raised a good point," Sam interrupted, "Not the desert part but about the room." His glinting, vermillion eyes surveyed the entire area, searching for something specific. "Elisabeth is a Tarantula Hawk, right?"
"Yeah," both Lucy and Rupert answered at the same time.
"Then, she was supposed to have a space dedicated to her studies. A workshop of some kind," Sam shifted his attention to the virtually empty shelf. "Guys, pick up the books and arrange them in alphabetical order," the Nightingales immediately did as they were told.
Eventually, each slot was quickly occupied until they were left with a single gap. Sam took a deep breath before he inserted the last book.
CLICK!
A keypad suddenly popped out on the left side of the shelf, that upon further inspection, seemed to be a six numbers combination lock.
"Okay, now what?" Lucy grumbled.
"Her birthday, maybe?" Rupert grouched, scratching his head.
"Close. The date of her induction into the Order. When was it?" Sam asked.
Lucy swiftly replied, "2nd April 1001, if I remember correctly." After hearing those dates, Sam inputted 020401 with the keypad.
DING!
The shelf slowly split open, revealing a hidden staircase leading into the basement. "Dude," Rupert was so stunned he could not even come up with a witty remark.
"How did you know that was the code?" asked Lucy, sharing the same baffled expression as her brother.
"You said the day Elisabeth was inducted was the happiest day of her life. So, it's highly possible she used the date for the code. Thanks for that, by the way," Sam cracked a little smile.
"S-Sure. No problem," Lucy stammered, blushing at the unexpected compliment. "Anyways, let's head straight down," the flustered woman rushed toward the stairs while trying to hide her bright red cheeks from Sam and her brother's eyes.
****qs****************************************
As they anticipated, the workshop was more spacious than the whole cabin upstairs. Various equipment was arranged neatly around the room -- each was powered by the solar panels fitted to the roof of the building.
Numerous bookshelves sat at each corner of the basement, storing research journals dating back to the first year of the post-Cataclysmic era.
Being an avid reader, Lucy could not contain her excitement when she saw Elisabeth's awe-inspiring collection of books, "Oh my God, could it be…? All of these are about past civilizations! Let’s see…The Dominion of the Eagles, the Country of the Lone Iron Tower, and there's also one about the Underwater Cities!"
"Sheesh, of all the things to get yourself worked up," Rupert muttered, rolling his eyes out of boredom.
"Who can blame her? She didn't even have the chance to visit the Grand Library since our return from the Wailing Forest," Sam then patted the elder Nightingale on the back, "Let's leave her be and look around. Oh, and don't break anything."
Then, the two men roamed the area together, inspecting each cabinet and machine -- hoping to find some kind of clue.
"Ah-choo!" Rupert sneezed, "Lizzy should really clean this place up. I can barely breathe in here."
"Well, you're one to talk. I do remember a certain someone got himself kicked in the rear for not tidying up his bed," Sam responded with a sarcastic tone.
The next thing he heard was a burst of laughter, followed by Rupert saying, "Fair play, dude. Fair play."
The duo continued their search quietly until something caught Sam's attention. On one of the worktables was a slab, with wave-like symbols carved on its surface. He noticed brushes of different shapes and sizes next to them, alongside a small sticky note filled with scribbles. The only words he could make out of it were 'Jewels' and 'Tree' while the rest were crossed out, either out of frustration or on purpose. However, what bothered Sam the most was the writing – it felt somewhat familiar to him – as if he saw them somewhere before.
"Hey, guys!" the female Nightingale called out, "You might want to see this."
Shortly after the trio regrouped, Lucy instantly showed them a page from a brand-new journal. "This was written...three days ago," Sam mouthed before he started to read the recent entry out loud:
[0700]
[An overnight sandstorm has revealed a stone structure resembling a crypt entrance -- northwest of the Base. Initial analysis indicates that the architecture predates all of the Four Major Kingdoms. But there are also traces of electronic components, suggesting a later addition by an unknown party. Nevertheless, the excavation was postponed at 1230 due to a sandstorm. Further investigation is imperative to determine the origin of the electronic components.]
"Northwest? Isn't that the red cross we've seen on the map earlier?" Rupert interjected with his eyebrows knitted together.
"That seems to be the case," said Lucy as she gently closed the journal, "What do you guys think? Maybe Lizzy is somewhere near the ruin?"
Sam held his chin, both eyes completely shut as he mulled over the new piece of information. After some time, he looked at the siblings; both were already aware of what he was about to say, "I'm afraid there's only one way to find out."
