Divine System: Land of the Abominations-Chapter 289: Into the Earth.

Arthur pulled a small lantern from his pack and lit it. The warm glow pushed back the shadows, revealing the first few feet of what lay beneath.

Stone steps, worn by countless years, descended into the earth at a steep angle. The walls on either side were carved from solid rock, their surfaces covered in the same strange symbols similar to what they’d seen above.

And there, just at the edge of the lantern’s light, a soft, ethereal light seemed to take over.

The fungus clung to the walls in patches, pulsing with a faint bioluminescent glow. Even from here, he could see spores drifting through the air like lazy snowflakes, caught in invisible currents.

"Fascinating," Arthur murmured, already moving toward the entrance.

Nero grabbed his arm. "You promised. Just a look, remember?"

Arthur glanced at him, then back at the opening. For a moment, Nero thought he might argue. Then he nodded.

"You’re right. We’ve confirmed it exists. That’s enough." He raised the lantern higher, trying to see further down. "Though I wish we could get a better view of—"

A sound echoed up from the darkness below.

It was a sound unlike a current of wind sloshing through the hollow earth. No.

There was something different about this...

All three of them froze.

The blue glow from the fungus intensified slightly, then faded back to its previous dimness. The spores in the air seemed to pause mid-drift, then resumed their lazy descent.

Arthur’s eyes widened as a flash of blue appeared in the depths of his eyes.

"Let’s go."

Nero’s first thought as he stood at the entrance to the ruins, watching Arthur lower himself carefully through the gap in the collapsed structure was,

’Crap!’

They should have turned.

But they hadn’t.

And although he didn’t want to admit it, Nero couldn’t deny that he was curious as well.

Despite what he had seen, even though he wanted to be cautious, he still couldn’t help but believe, subconsciously, that whatever was under here would be defeated by him.

He had defeated a number of powerful goes already. What was one more? Even tho I he didn’t want to acknowledge it, subconsciously, he knew it was true.

"Just the first chamber," Arthur muttered to himself. "We confirm what’s down there, make a few observations, and leave. Just five minutes."

And Nero, fool that he was, had followed them down.

The descent was steeper than it had looked from above. The stone steps were surprisingly dry. Even the walls were, completely unlike what he would have expected from an environment that could support the growth of such vibrant fungi. The walls pressed in close on either side, close enough that Nero could touch both simultaneously if he stretched his arms out.

The glowing growths grew more prevalent as they descended. What had been occasional patches near the surface became thick carpets that covered entire sections of wall. The bioluminescent glow was stronger here, bright enough that Arthur dimmed his lantern to conserve oil.

"Don’t touch it," Arthur warned, though he didn’t need to. Nero had no intention of making contact with anything down here.

The spores were everywhere now, so thick in the air that each breath tasted faintly of a cloying sweet taste fixed in with dirt and grass. Nero found himself covering his nose and mouth, trying to minimize how much of the stuff he was inhaling.

"How deep do these stairs go?" Jacob muttered from behind them.

"I can’t tell," Arthur said. "The angle’s too steep to see more than a few feet ahead."

They continued downward in silence broken only by the scuff of boots on stone and their own breathing.

They emerged into a chamber that made Nero’s breath catch in his throat. It was vast, far larger than should have been possible given the modest size of the ruins above. The ceiling arched overhead, disappearing into darkness that Arthur’s lantern couldn’t penetrate. The walls stretched away in all directions, their surfaces completely covered in the blue fungus.

But it was the floor that held Nero’s attention.

It was made of the same black stone he’d seen in his vision, polished to a mirror sheen despite centuries of abandonment. And set into that surface at regular intervals were circles of symbols, each one radiating outward from a central point like the spokes of a wheel.

"A ritual chamber," Arthur huffed.

He moved further into the room, his lantern revealing more details. Alcoves set into the walls, each one containing something that might have once been offerings but had long since decayed to dust. Channels carved into the floor, forming patterns that connected the ritual circles to each other and to something at the far end of the chamber.

Something they couldn’t quite make out in the darkness despite the blue glow.

"We should document this," Arthur spoke swiftly, already pulling out a small journal and piece of charcoal from his pack.

Nero wanted to say something. However, he sighed and shook his head.

The ruins he was seeing was rather unlike the one he had seen in his vision.

In his vision, he had seen something slumbering in an enormous pool of crystal clear water surrounded by the glowing blue fungi. It was enormous and immensely large. Larger than anything he could ever fathom.

It had filled him with immense fear.

But he hadn’t seen any bodies of water.

In fact, everywhere so far was incredibly dry.

He wore a grimace on his face.

What were they to do now? Arthur and Jacob were busy exploring the surrounding area.

’Why did I see that in the first place?’ he tried asking the Oracle.

{Because something is trying to speak to you}.

Nero’s expression turned ugly as his grimaced stretched even wider,

’What? What something?!’

{It is an ancient being of unclear origins}. 𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮

Nero’s eyes widened, ’What? Even you can’t tell what it is?’

{Some beings possess the power to deliberately obscure their presence and nature. Against entities like that, yes. It is indeed rather difficult to discern their nature and identity}.

Nero’s face darkened,

’Am I in danger?’

There was a long pause.

Then the Oracle spoke,

{It is uncertain}.

Arthur had moved to one of the alcoves and was examining something within. "These look like ceremonial vessels. Designed to hold... I’m not sure. Liquids? The interior surfaces have channels that lead to—"

He stopped abruptly.

"What?" Jacob asked, dropping a small stone figuring he found in an alcove and walking up to Arthur.

"There’s something written here..." He leaned closer, holding his lantern up.

Then his eyes widened, "It’s in Old Thesian. I can make out a few words..."

Jacob urged him, "Well? What does it say?"

Nero’s walked up to them swiftly and spun Arthur around,

"We need to leave. Now!"

"Just a moment. This is important." Arthur’s voice had taken on a distracted quality, "If I can just translate this section—"

BANG!