20th of Summer, 515
Up in the world of Syna's warmth was where bright, green things grew and life moved with both laziness and urgency. Summer had come, but it would just as quickly leave if one wasn't paying enough attention. So the surface dwellers busied themselves in preparation. Hustling, bustling, trading, and making merry whenever they could. 'Twas the usual flurry for those of mortal blood and flesh living above ground.
But down in the darkness of the Aylasa caves, where it was perpetually cool and damp and home to beings both known and unknown, there was no such surge of activity.
After the minor floods of Spring, the caves had settled back into old habits of quiet stillness, marred only by the drip-dripping of water and the occasional pitter patter of things moving amongst the stones. Except things were not as they always where. For the shallow pools and abundant crevices had come to harbor random objects after the floods, and in places where some of Syna's light managed to peek through, a gleam of something other than rock could be seen here and there.
Other things dwelled amongst these pools and crevices, too. But they chose to blend in with the caves instead. Whether to hide or prey, few will ever know. And though the cavernous spaces are usually as silent as a crypt, a recent addition has been punctuating the air with a foreboding yuk, yuk, yuk...
At the entrance of the caves, however, no such warnings could be heard. All seemed peaceful. Harmless, even, as a sigh of wind every now and then would escape from the mouth, almost as if it were beckoning someone to step inside.
Plantlife had overrun much of the trail leading toward it, though one would still be able to see swirls of golden dust filtered with Syna's beams drawn into the mouth. Moths and other insects would wander in as well, along with the less frequent hare or bird, suggesting something of interest may still lurk within the abandoned darkness. Little signs of former life could be found as well. A spoon hidden in the grass, an old, moldy boot stuck in dirt, perhaps even a skull or two sunk to the bottom of a large puddle. Which begs the question, what more might be hidden deeper inside of the caves?
Only the truly brave--or reckless--would find out.
But down in the darkness of the Aylasa caves, where it was perpetually cool and damp and home to beings both known and unknown, there was no such surge of activity.
After the minor floods of Spring, the caves had settled back into old habits of quiet stillness, marred only by the drip-dripping of water and the occasional pitter patter of things moving amongst the stones. Except things were not as they always where. For the shallow pools and abundant crevices had come to harbor random objects after the floods, and in places where some of Syna's light managed to peek through, a gleam of something other than rock could be seen here and there.
Other things dwelled amongst these pools and crevices, too. But they chose to blend in with the caves instead. Whether to hide or prey, few will ever know. And though the cavernous spaces are usually as silent as a crypt, a recent addition has been punctuating the air with a foreboding yuk, yuk, yuk...
At the entrance of the caves, however, no such warnings could be heard. All seemed peaceful. Harmless, even, as a sigh of wind every now and then would escape from the mouth, almost as if it were beckoning someone to step inside.
Plantlife had overrun much of the trail leading toward it, though one would still be able to see swirls of golden dust filtered with Syna's beams drawn into the mouth. Moths and other insects would wander in as well, along with the less frequent hare or bird, suggesting something of interest may still lurk within the abandoned darkness. Little signs of former life could be found as well. A spoon hidden in the grass, an old, moldy boot stuck in dirt, perhaps even a skull or two sunk to the bottom of a large puddle. Which begs the question, what more might be hidden deeper inside of the caves?
Only the truly brave--or reckless--would find out.