Uncharted

[Caira Ayryn]

Part 6: Apart

A fork formed from rock, is what the strolling pair came upon near the end of the valley. Merik looked surprised to see it, and had even brought out his map for reference. "Well, Caira, I hate to tell you. But this isn't on my old map nor the updated version. Meaning this is a trap set up by another gang. Meaning," he sighed with anguish, "One of these leads to certain doom and there is no way to tell which..."

The pair spent some time investigating the sculpted rock, and it was evident neither pathway had used a chisel to create the tunnel through the rocky ridges of sand. And each, for as long as they could see or sense, lead straight for at least a few miles. "Man it looks like this must've taken years to carve.."

"Mr. Daniels warned me about the tunnels out here," Caira spoke assuming Merik had some idea of the stranger she had mentioned before explaining just who he was, "He was hospitable to me in the town I found you."

"Ah, sure." Merik responded absent-mindedly.

With a sigh both faced one another and spoke their resolve and decision, "We should split up."

"We should stay together." The other contrasted. "Even if one tunnel leads to certain doom, it may just be a faceable foe against two Primes. No matter the peril." 

Their disagreement continued. "Even if one of us dies during the battle against the unknown doom, the survivor or other will still have to wait, or die as well, in order to respawn at the same time rather than risk my almost reaching you only to have you die from another danger. I won't even mention the other aspect." Implied banishment circles.

"Only one knows where it actually is, which means both members of this team are dependent on one another." The bickering only continued.

"There's a better chance one of us makes it beyond this if we split up."

"But we are traveling together making each other's safety, our priority and responsibility."

"Even if one faces the doom they can still flee from it, assuming it is a foe, and the person on the other side of the wall can just wait while the other retraces their footsteps."

"You are forgetting one thing! The sand and rock in the middle make for a rather ample bridge, is there any chance we can scale it and take the middle route?"

"Nay, I wouldn't say so, the reason we take this valley is so we are not seen from above as easily. The cliffs provide good cover from the buzzards and vultures which will draw attention to our position (by circling) and bring a refreshing visit from nasty some very enemies our way."

With a sigh, they were mainly at a draw. One wanted to split, the other to remain together and choose one of the pathways- even if the one ended up being the path of their destruction.

Caira thought that both paths were bad and would have preferred staying put, the fact that situation that disrupted their partnership didn't make the decision any easier. "We should rest on it, and then flip a coin when we wake up."

Upon agreement, Merik took the first watch.

Drawing a coin and tossing it into the air, he was most surprised as the two sided coin, that was weighted (as a bit of a trick of leverage in his off-time) landed on tails rather than heads.

This meant the pair split up. "Listen," he leaned in with intensity, one that could make it seem as though peril quaked in his very presence, "If both pathways are a trap, we either unite, or I want you to make a run for it. The reason is obvious. I can't protect us both and you'd be more apt to get caught in the crossfire."

To split up was probably the worst thing they could have done. "Alright, we should shout from the other side of we need help other than that."

"..."

"What if we are pulled away and unable to make noise?"

"Alright, we will do the following, every five minutes we will whistle to one another. And if we don't find that we hear a whistle within the five, we'll scale the wall separating us, or break it down."

"What if something imitates the whistle?" Caira asked.

"Then we'll both be SOL, won't we?" Merik pulled out a pocket watch as Caira pulled out her mobile phone, and they each chose their way: The girl with the path on the right, and the male with the path on the left.

"One whistle means danger, if we aren't able to make time to talk or scream. Also three whistles means I recognize that this is the correct pathway."

With a nod, they both departed, Caira put the map in her pouch and uneasily looked down at the time. Five minutes passed, a long whistle flew from her lips, followed by Merik's low frequency. 

Each continued onward.

A tune of agreement responded again. And again.

Caira could feel his vibrations through the wall, which was reassuring as she could keep an eye out for his safety without him even knowing it, and she had a security measure that added to the contract they had made. None of it helped though, with the uneasy feeling in her gut.

Another whistle sputtered from Merik's dry lips, followed by the echoed chime of her own. She summoned a star -her source of sustenance- after getting sick along the pathway because of a malnourished amount of energy. The girl consumed the star when she was sure no one was watching, and swallowed the bright beam of energy.

After a few hours of their rhythm of song, his began to dissipate, as each Prime turned a corner. Both paused at the corner of rock and knocked on the sides, feeling for hollow parts of an illusion or place to cross. Sadly this was no trick as with the curved terrain they became further apart and their whistles lost to the distance that would no longer carry the sound.

Caira waited, as if a pause now would make any difference from their askew paths. Her eyes swept the 'U' shaped landscape and she then got into a blitz fighting stance, ready to take on something that seemed to be tunneling itself though the ground.

"First I'll kill you... Then I'll kill your friend," a horrid telepathic voice shook from the ground as a giant insect propelled itself into the air, ready to pounce on Caira. The prime had already unsheathed her sword and was ready for action. 

"I won't give you that chance." The girl challenged the pink creature back, and they sunk into a duel of time, each wielding their main element. The worm had its battlefield, while Caira had adequate defense. Only one would be the victor. She stared at the monster, waiting for the creature to seal its fate.

The booming voice resounded in her mind again, "Hard to think clearly with my voice rattling in there... Isn't it?"

"I don't need to think to defeat a cretin like you!" She said stubbornly but admitted only to herself that the noise had made her disoriented. Up became down as she lashed out with her sword, struggling to keep her eyes on the ugly worm-like creature that belonged buried below the surface of the earth. The towering pink worm took up most of the ten foot passage way, while its movements were slow and impeded by its lack of opposable limbs. It lurched to squash her easily with its weight, the Prime made a few agile dodges, yet her sword was tossed aside after ricocheting from the scaly reptilian skin of the beast.

She took a breath in before she charged and tossed an out an exploding dagger, which ended up buying her some time. Now she had the advantageous distraction of a few clattering rocks, for her to deploy a more lethal attack. Eclipse flung from her fingertips and leapt toward the beast in a fearful ball of energy. The worm screamed as the attack tore through its body and injured it so that it seemed mainly immobile. It shuddered weakly in its last moments.

"How do you like the taste of that?" Caira scoffed angrily and remembered its threat to her life, "Didn't have me so easily after all, didya?" She said and bent down to get her sword after a last breath wilted with the maimed creature's pink skin. 

She turned around and looked beyond the valley for a moment, pondering which direction she should turn. The beast upheaved its body, opening a rigid line of teeth to reveal a jagged smile and before Caira could move out of the way of the chomping jaws, a powerful wave thundered from behind her and the beast was thrashed aside. 

The girl turned to see Merik's figure, though his shirt was slightly torn around his collarbone and sleeve completely gone, he said simply, "See? Two is better than one."

"Hmph," she unveiled a glad smile upon seeing him, "Well, where the hell have you been then?"