Mother’s Uterus
The Quarry - August 19
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Artea finishes fixing up the cabin and receives a group of adventurers on their way to the Quarry.
Bottomless pit
The treasure-hunters cannot see to the bottom. Even with all the ropes tied together, Ayrrin cannot reach the bottom, strapped into their harnesses, rope in hand, rappelling down the face of a vast opening. Horizontal veins chase around the wall, indicating the layers and layers of history that have built up this land. Most of the veins are some shade of brown or grey—except for one, which is blood-red clay.
She founds a carved pocket in the shaft wall and signals for the others to come. A tight tunnel is excavated from this pocket, going deeper into the mountain. The group gathers, and one by one goes into the tunnel.
Like the mountain’s heartbeat, a faint tapping reverberates through the walls. No predator is felt by Soren. Artea hears the conversation in the nursery through her ring. The group is comforted by all this.
Rubies, spirits and darkness
Ayrrin sees first, but is afraid to touch it. With madness in his eyes, Soren chisels two rubies from the rock. He sees an even larger one beneath, but is convinced to let it be. His friends aren’t worthy of the mountain.
They all hear the cry of a child. Artea sees the spirit of a stone child crying as they work the walls of the tunnels. The image is in recursion until she is close enough. Then it dissipates.
The cry continues. A flush of darkness is following Ayrrin. She turns to give it a chase, and her hand is turned into stone by cold darkness. The others don’t see the same.
A statue and a stone child
Razzy is the first one to see a statue of a child. It is like what was previously found. Lorenz then sees one of the stone children. It cries.
Lorenz fixes the child’s hammer. The stone creature happily goes back to work, chiselling the walls. These working children built this entire cavern system.
Lorenz brings one of the rubies and puts it on the hand of the statue. The stone children quickly grab it and run deep into the tunnels, disappearing.
The group leaves the quarry. They took no ruby this time.