Chronicles of Yugure: Plummeting into Uncharted Depths

Day Nine

I arise at dawn, which makes me feel quite tired, and alone all the more. It is quiet in the realm at sunrise so I have a peaceful flight to the hole near the Great Tree of Twilight. Apparently this hole is a highway to many realms. One destination is the First Realm, my realm. Of course, this hole doesn't have the same feeling upon entering like that of the portals you can see strung about Yugure. It is, indeed, a hole. I begin to drop down into the hole and once inside I feel like I am free falling. I crack open my wings just a teeny bit to slow my descent down. Unfortunately the hole is not big enough to open my wings up to their complete span of 28 feet.

Finally reaching the bottom, I feel like I have just squeezed myself out of a straw. A cramp has decided to reside in my right hind leg. I try to stretch it out but the pain is too much. The leg will be kept raised during the continuation of the day, or at least what I think is the day. It is mostly dark in the tunnels I travel. I am only saved by the light of a small population of Mycena chlorophos. Their glow is unearthly and look far more impressive than the normal kind of glowing mushrooms. The green glow from just one mushroom can light up a vicinity of 3 feet in diameter.

I take a sample of the mushrooms and place it into a sealed container Lady Asha has provided. I'm not quite sure if that is what she means me to use it for, but if she does, she knows me well for such a short time being around me. The container glows brightly and the green can be seen clearly. 'I could use this as a lantern,' I think to myself, looking at the glow-in-the-dark flashlight I have just made.

The view is spectacular. I arrive in an oblong shaped burrow much larger than any cave or den I have ever been in. It is decently lighted and full of life. Chirping surrounds me, almost like a choir, from frogs and crickets. These creatures live in a wonderful paradise. A single, and large waterfall hangs on the wall, adorning it with its beauty. I take a small break, to rest my leg and to sketch out this brilliant view.

I open my knapsack to find some wonderful biscuits from the Hikari Clan. They put delightful morsels of cheese and spices into their dough which gave it a very tasteful flavor. There are five biscuits in total, so I eat two and save the other three for later. Lady Asha has also supplied me with a canteen filled with purified water. I sip on this and prepare my things for travel.

My leg is feeling much better from its cramp, so I can manage a quicker pace. Although there is beauty in the Ancient Catacombs, I know that it is best to hurry along. This League of Mist has apparently been terrorizing the winding paths of the catacombs, taking out caravans when they least expect it. Suna had told me a bit about vandals living in the underground maze called the Ancient Catacombs. Suna's tales had been proven to be true when I overheard some of the Hikarians talking about the League of Mist taking out their shipments of supplies that were coming from the catacombs.

I see an example of what Suna had described as a raid. A caravan wagon lays in an indentation in the rock wall formation. Its frame is smote across the pathway in front of me, and all its goods have fled the scene. By the dust that blankets the tragic displacement of its wooden frame, I can deduct the idea that this is one of the more recent of burglaries. I carry on, quickly, worried that the bandits may still be around even though I know very well that the odds of that being true are very low.

After a long journey from Paradise Warren, which I have come to name the wonderful underground hollow, I reach another pool of water. A trickle of a waterfall feeds this sample of a pond at a slow pace. Across from me, over the pool, is a very large wall. I am astounded at its height. It nearly touches the ceiling! This will hamper my travels a bit if I can not find a way across it. It seems a bit tight to fly over it, and I am not sure if my leg is up to climbing such a steep obstacle.