Luke Pane and his Anomaly Sister [ Fantasy ] (COMPLETED)

Chapter 10

After a while, the sounds of the forest began to change a little; even more so as they came upon the creek and started following it. The birds were getting quieter, the insects were louder and there were odd hums coming from all directions. This was turning out to be the most miserable day Luke would remember. All day, it was like this. He had a strange idea it could have been a shrine that was recently activated that was making those weird humming noises. What could have done that though? As far as he knew, they were the only sentient ones in the forest. The humming was getting louder and louder the farther they traveled.

"The cave is close...!" Brim said in a voice a little under a yell. Luke winced up at the tree canopies. The day was almost over. It felt a little like it was only about an hour or two ago that they entered the forest. Luke carefully checked the watch. The dial was spinning. This completely confused him. Then he thought maybe there was a massive amount of energy here that was making it malfunction. It was starting to seem like this place bent time in all kinds of ways. With that thought, a new worry formed in Luke's mind. He slightly shouted, "Is time warped in this forest?"

"Yes, but I can resist it. Don't stray off from the path or you will get lost and see things you wouldn't want to see. Stay close."
Luke grimaced and nodded.

A little farther, and the noises became so loud Luke had to cover his ears and grit his teeth. They were walking up to a cave with vines crawling all over the entrance and a bluish glow emanated from the inside. The creek ran straight into the cave. Brim got off his horse and stopped in front of it with a sudden yell and the humming immediately stopped. He turned to Luke who removed his hands from his ears in amazement.

"What was the humming? Is this the cave you mentioned?" Luke asked. "You'll see. Dismount Alarich and come." Brim beckoned him with two fingers, guiding his own horse by the reins into the cave. "...Alright." Luke did as told and trailed behind him.

The moment he stepped inside, he instantly lost his breath. There were crystals... everywhere! Very, very beautiful crystal stalactites. "Crystals?!" He ducked under a few while following behind Brim. A lot of them looked extremely sharp, and they were glowing. Brim went and knelt beside the creek, taking handfuls of the water. As he drank it, Luke spun around on his heels to the sight of all the beauty around them. There were also blue dots on the ceiling and sparkly rocks in every place he looked. The horses soon joined the sorcerer at the creek and Luke said, "The crystals were making the noise... and you silenced them?"
"Yes, but I don't think the sprites will take kind to that when they wake up. They're little pixie-looking things, and can be vicious too. They despise when their environment is tampered with. I highly suggest you don't take any crystals. Here, drink. This is very good for you."
"What?!" Luke gasped. Brim raised his eyebrows and slowly looked over at him, "Don't worry... these sprites know me. They'll only come after me. You're safe." Luke stared at him for a while, then he gazed at the surroundings again. "Cave sprites... little cave pixies..." He murmured to himself and then sat next to the sorcerer, taking a few handfuls of the water. 

It tasted so pure, so clean and rich... sweet even. "Oh this is amazing..." Luke said.
"Life crystals make the purest water in all of the world."
"Does that mean if I drank it every day, I would live forever?"
"No young adventurer... that only works for sprites." Brim answered. Luke watched him and then his eyes dropped. "Wow..." he then started taking the fruit and some bread from home out of his pack.

He gave an apple to Alarich, saying, "Here you go my friend. Enjoy." Brim also took a few little treats from the pack on his horse, glancing at the ceiling before looking at Luke again that faintly smiled at the horse. "Don't be surprised if the crystals start glowing again through the night."
"What? Why? Do the sprites make that happen?"
"No. It's a certain bacteria within them that make them glow. The sprites are responsible for their humming."
"How?"
"They withdraw energy from them as they sleep. When they wake, they are revitalized."
"It sounds almost like a horror story."
"Haha, no... they are quite the opposite of horrific."
"Do you think they will be angry with you when they wake?"
"They would probably be annoyed, but not angry. They know me, like I said."
"Ah..." Luke nodded slowly, looking at the treat in the sorcerer's hand. Brim took a bite of it and made the same kind smile at him. "Would you like some?" Luke remembered the bread he gave him. This was very tempting...