The Butterfly Girl: A Star is Born

#131 Routine Regained

[Sophia]

Since then, months past. Winter was coming to an end and the warmth of a new spring was beginning in its place. We had enough time to heal and rest. Enough time to calm our nerves and replenish our stamina. Since that day, we all agreed that the caves were forever off limits. There was nothing worth going back for. The Twins didn't take it so lightly, but they understood and began to accept that it was no longer their home. Even though I created a thick, metal door keep the Demon in, I couldn't be completely sure that it would stay there. We just hoped we didn't see it for a long while. We knew it'd be a big adjustment for the Twins and I offered to do whatever I could to make our world more comfortable for them. All they requested is that we come help out with the remaining Moonflower. (They also talked about relocating it because it's growing pretty fast and there wasn't anything else I could do to keep it out of the light. We're still looking into that.)
Apollo's arms completely healed, but his original abilities were completely gone. No more conjuring fire for warmth. (And the occasional arson threats.) No more ice to shape and keep our drinks cold. It took him a while to get used to, the adjustment was a little more difficult than I thought. But it also gave him enough time to figure some stuff out for himself. Teri was a little weary, too nervous to return to the tree house and back to her submerged room where she could re-hydrate. Staying so long out of the water left her a little drained. I could tell, I'd never seen her so... not cheerful. She also complained her skin was feeling a little irritated, but she didn't want to sleep in the bathtub again. So instead we just kept the tub filled and anytime during the day she could just sit and soak for a couple hours until she felt satisfied enough.
I went back to my normal routine of doing absolutely nothing particularly important.
Despite an irregular sleeping schedule, I did nothing but play games, watch TV and stay up late doing whatever else in my room. Not many drawings to show for, but when I decided to not procrastinate, I went through all the photos of the murals I had on my phone and started editing them so it was easier to see and look at all the details. I went back and forth between all of them, staring at them for long periods of time and trying to figure out if I could understand what they meant. Even though I was advancing my skills as an artist, I'm afraid to say I didn't have the knowledge or know-how to understand what the murals were depicting.

When the time was right, I showed them to everyone and began to theorize and share our own thoughts about it. Neither one of us could understand what they meant.
The first mural with the large circle in the center, split into three sections and strange figures and shapes lined within each of them.
The second mural with a large circle, smaller figures standing within it as larger figures all drawn in different actions as the shapes that looked like eyes surrounded them too. A few unrecognizable characters surrounding everything.
The third mural that lit up like a neon sign when my crystal gem responded to it, depicting the same symbol as the one on the cover of the Ruined Book. The rest of the wall covered in lines of text.
Then the forth hidden mural that was scratched and carved into the walls like something drew it in a frenzy. A lone star shape in the center, lines of thin triangles pointing upward as a weird, shapeless mass surrounded all of it.

The glowing mural was what intrigued everyone the most. But I already explained to them earlier that I didn't understand why my crystal reacted to it. I didn't know it could do something like that, but when the Demon had me hostage, it told me that it could act as some sort of key. Of some sorts.
I don't really remembered everything it said to me.
I'm the only person that has this, a crystal gem that can transform into a weapon when needed. I thought that was all it did. But it seems the Demon has been doing some research, and apparently this thing might have more unique properties than I knew of. I tried to explain what happened in greater detail.
"I think it said... like, we are some sort of... 'remnant' of a... I don't remember, a lost civilization maybe? And it thought that getting this would make it powerful in some way. I think I remember it said that this thing was some sort of key to getting hold of a better power."
"And what is that power?" Teri asked.
"Like, a weapon or something?" Apollo added. I shook my head.
"I don't know, just... something powerful. Probably to make it stronger so it can get rid of us and take over the world or something."
"Okay well, obviously if it's searching for something to make it stronger, then we gotta make sure it never finds it." Apollo replied.
"But we don't even know what this weapon or power is. You're absolutely right though, we need to keep it safe and hidden so it can't use it against us." Teri agreed.
"What about that whole remnant thing? It said we were part of something lost, ancient thing. We don't really know what that means, but Teri's home kingdom could be a part of that. You had an entire kingdom living under the lake and we didn't even know about it. Teri, how long have you lived there?" the Twins asked.
"Um, all my life. My Mother told me that our home kingdom was all that was left of..." she suddenly trailed off. Her fins twitching as she thought and everyone could see it.
"Left of what?"
"... Sophie, let me see the picture of the mural again."
"Uh, which one?"
"The first one."
I pulled out my phone and scrolled back to the photo of the first mural. Teri took my phone out of my hand and studied it closer. Her eyes began to widen with realization and she opened her mouth.
"My... Mother once told me a story about three kingdoms. They lived... on different levels of the land. A kingdom on the surface, a kingdom in the water, and a kingdom far below. They all lived peacefully and worked harmoniously with each other. Until two of them fell to ruin. I don't think... she explained why or how. But the kingdom in the water was all that survived and eventually forgot about the other two, living alone and staying hidden forever. She said... that the kingdom was the one I lived in." Teri turned her head away, all of us staring at her. Hanging onto every word and wondering if she would continue.
"I... asked her once if that story was true and what the other two kingdoms were. She said she didn't know and that it was only a story, and that it should stay that way. I'm starting to think... maybe that story might be true. My kingdom was the only one left that I knew of and I thought we'd be well protected. Until..... we weren't..."
"So... maybe the story was inspired by true events? Or something like that?" Apollo thought out loud.
"Hmmm... I'm not sure. But look, that circle there with the lines in it. All those weird shapes and symbols kinda look like it might represent the three kingdoms. See, look."
Teri held out my phone and the picture was zoomed in on the circle. After staring at the shapes in the center, we began to notice that some of those shapes looked close to a simplified version of Teri's underwater castle.
"Oh yeah... it almost looks the same. But I don't know about the other two though." I muttered.
"I don't know if my Mother made up that story or if it was something that actually happened at some point, maybe even before we were born. But this has to prove something. It has to prove that the Demon knew about it too. What do you think?"
"Well..... if it is all true, there has to be something left from the other two kingdoms. But I've never seen anything about any sort of lost civilization or a kingdom that fell to ruin here. They don't... really exist in this country. Sophie, have you seen anything like that before?" Apollo turned and asked me. I shook my head.
"I've never seen anything like that either. Even though that entire forest we live in is untouched, I've never seen any sort of ruin or anything like that. You might be right though, Teri. If it did exist, your kingdom was probably the last to survive and anything left behind from the other two might just be completely gone. I don't really know though. But..... the Demon said that we are the only ones left of whatever all of that was. And if all of that is true... then whatever it's looking for might involve us too."
"Of course it involves us, it's been trying to kill us ever since we existed. Maybe it's known about it all this time and has been trying to take us out before we figure out what it really wants to achieve. Whatever the Demon is planning, it's not gonna stop until it finds this hidden power and destroys us in the process. We need to find it first before it's too late."

We didn't figure out much, but what we did know was that we had to keep a closer eye on everything we previously overlooked. This Demon was looking for something to increase its power and wouldn't stop for anything until it found it and made sure we wouldn't be here to ever see it.
My crystal was the key to finding that power, which meant that I had to keep this extra guarded so it would never get it out of my hands again. I can still remember that suffocating feeling... and I hated to think about it.
Until we found out what this power is and what it plans on using it for, we'd have to keep a closer eye on each other and the world we live in.