The room was so silent you could hear a pin drop, and if all eyes hadn’t been on him already, they certainly were now.

  “…”

  “Are you going to speak Black Beak?” Nokuji questioned.

  “…”

  He breathed out a heavy sigh as the words almost got stuck in his throat, “What precisely do you want me to say? She’s with you all now, so what would answering that question matter?”

  “She has already said much, but I wish to hear it from you as well,” Nokuji answered him in a calm and commanding tone of voice. “How did you become involved with her?”

  He thought back to those events and felt a conflicted sense of happiness. As long as he ignored most parts of those memories, not that he did as he told them all.

  “That is it?” Nokuji questioned. “You met her mother and then took her child?”

  “She begged me to save her,” Kenneth said in a melancholy voice with his sight lowered. “I did what I could, kept her fed, removed those… chains--"

  “And put new ones on,” Nokuji interrupted her words, making Kenneth snap his head up. “The poor girl has been saying such strange things. Truly, what abhorred things must you have said and done to her for her to be so?”

  In a flash of anger, Kenneth clutched his fist as he wanted to jump and shout at the top of his lungs at her but resisted. Tempering his emotions like a fire in a furnace.

  “Nokstella… she is so young… too young for what she’s experienced and seen. She came to the conclusion that each one of you is bad outside of chains all because of that attack led by your mother.” He said the anger he felt seeping out despite his best efforts. “For so long, I’ve tried to convince her otherwise; a task made infinitely harder by your new second in command… all because I knew she had to be among her people.”

  “Do you know of the law of choosing or the significance behind Nokstella choosing you?” Nokuji asked.

  “..No,” He replied, his tone still seeping with fading anger. “She just began calling me that out of the blue.”

  “Well, she has chosen, and there’s nothing that can undo it. If what you said now is even half true, all you need is to be educated, but time will tell. Split do see to that,” Nokuji said as everyone reacted with different expressions, though no one said a word. “Afterward, take him to Nokset.”

  “Yes, commander,” Split said in a low voice, holding her head even lower, not seeing as Nokuji threw Kenenth’s bag to her, hitting her head.

  “Never let it out of your grasp.”

  She picked it up, and as things came to an end, Split led the way with Kenneth in tow out of the Great Pyramid and through the streets.

  “So where are you taking me?” Kenneth questioned.

  She didn’t even bother to glance back at him; she just kept on walking.

  Wandering if she even heard him, he followed along to wherever she was leading him. Eventually, they arrived at an inconspicuous building no different from any other except for the fact two guards were standing watch.

  Both looked at Split as she walked over to the stone door and, with great effort, opened it while one of the guards smirked a smile. Immediately, a hot blast of air rushed out, and Kenenth was already dreading entering; however, if this would lead him to see Kolu and the others, he couldn’t let a little heat stop him.

  Walking forward, he attempted to follow, but before he could enter, both guards grabbed him by the shoulder and stopped him.

  His head twisted to look at them both, “I need to follow her.”

  Both their grips tightened, “No men, No Heretic, and No whatever you are.”

  “It’s the commander’s orders,” Split said as her footsteps resumed.

  Both guards’ pupils narrowed into a thin slit, their scales tinting slightly brighter, yet both let go of him. He hurried along down the stairs, wondering where she was leading him.

  With a loud bang, the thick stone door slammed shut, cutting off any cool air and light from the outside.

  It surprised him so much that he missed a step and fell.

  However, before he could kiss the stone steps, Split turned around and caught him.

  “Thanks,” He said, getting back on his feet, whereupon she turned around and kept walking down the steps, which were mostly illuminated by the multicolored crystals in the ceiling, which came to an end by another stone door a bit ahead.

  Split opened that as well, but where Kenneth had been expecting a room of sorts, there were only more steps leading further down. Following the path, he walked ahead of Split, who closed the door behind them until they reached another door and then one more as they went further and further down.

  Sweating like a roasting pig at a summer barbecue, Kenneth noted the echo in the corroidor making it sound like more than then just him and Split were walking in her, yet he couldn’t help but wonder what was so important that it was kept so deep down with so many layers of protection.

  It was a question he would soon get an answer to as the next door opened. Already, he could tell the light on the other side was different, and as he walked inside, feelings of awe and disappointment permeated inside him.

  It was only a very large and empty room with illuminating crystals all over the ceiling and wide stone pathways slightly elevated above fine and dry sand to the side, each leading to the other doors.

  “Er... is this where you roll around and dry off or something,” He asked, crouching down by the edge of the stone and grabbing a handful of sand, watching it all run through his fingers until every grain was gone.

  With a bang, the last door closed, and Split walked over to Kenneth. Suddenly, she grabbed him by the arm, “You are not allowed to touch the sand.”

  “And why’s that?” He questionened.

  “It’s the law.” was the only reply he got as Split somewhat roughly dragged him to the center where the pathways crossed and stopped releasing her grip.

  Somewhat confused, he looked around, wondering if he’d just missed something, but no matter where he looked, he saw the same: sand and stone. In hopes of getting some clarification, he turned to Split, yet her hardened visage and cold gaze offered none.

  “I can’t believe some people pay money for something like this,” he muttered to himself as he sat down on the surprisingly cool stones, or perhaps they were just the least warm thing in here.

  Regardless, it didn’t stop him from proceeding to lie down, sprawled out, wondering just how long he was going to be waiting here.

  Without any natural light, it was hard to tell exactly how much time had passed, but eventually, the sound of stone grinding echoed inside the large, barren room.

  “Get up,” Split said.

  With an exhausted grunt, he slowly followed her command. As he dusted himself off, he noticed on the ground beneath him an imprint muttering, “Huh… a sweat angle.”

  Thought with little time to marvel, Kenneth raised his head to see a grey-scaled woman wearing the all too fashionable tunic walking along the pathway.

  “So, was this the one we were waiting for?” He asked.

  “Watch her,” Split replied.

  The woman noticed both of them but didn’t give as much as a quick glance. Her attention was fully drawn to the sand beside her as she squatted down and began tracing her palm on the surface in a wide arc, slowly moving it further ahead as she began crawling out into it.

  Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original.

  At first, it seemed she was going in a straight line, but every now and again, she slightly changed course until she came to a stop and drew a line in the sand in the shape of a triangle.

  Spreading her legs until her feet touched the lower tips of the triangle, she dug a hole in the center. With a hiss, she bent her knees and leaned forward, overlapping her hand at the top of the shape.

  Not one to easily blush or be disgusted, and mostly confused at the moment, Kenneth asked, “Eh... what’s with the shit show?”

  However, Split didn’t give an answer. Her sight only met his before she gestured for him to keep looking at the squatting woman.

  The idea of closing his eyes crossed his mind. It wasn’t as though he wasn’t used to seeing gross stuff with patients; however, he felt he should respect her privacy a little more than gawking like some perverted sicko.

  Although he didn’t, there was a reason why she, and he guessed the commander, wanted him to see this.

  A reason that became somewhat more apparent as the woman’s tail suddenly straightened and began to rise, revealing she was in the middle of laying an egg, and a big one at that, from the looks of it.

  It suddenly became all too apparent what this place was, what was underneath the sand, and why it was protected.

  ‘It was a nest,’ He thought in realization, which quickly became concerned. ‘Should I help her? I know women can give birth on their own, and with her position, she’s using gravity to her advantage and doing well from the looks of it, but what if there are complications, like... like... high blood pressure and... cracking?

  ‘Oh, I really ain’t a veterinarian. Of all the things I studied outside the curriculum in MED school, I never once in my childhood went to my neighbor and saw how chickens lay eggs.’

  As much as he could kick himself for not doing something in the past, it would just be a waste of time. For now, he had to observe and learn as much as he could about Nok. Though, in the back of his mind, he was worried about potential complications.

  Though luckly, none occurred even after a somewhat long while of hissing and grunting, where the egg peaked in and out until it finally slid out into the hole. Looking drained, though not particularly exhausted, the woman somewhat weakly buried it before making her way back to the stone pathway using the trail she’d made to avoid stepping on any egg.

  However, as she took her leave, the smallest sound of a crack echoed weakly inside the nest. The woman stopped up as the sound strengthened ever so slightly. Her sight was immediately drawn to a small pile of sand that grew and shifted until suddenly, a little brown snout poked through.

  The babe that had just hatched, wet with membrane, crawled up from the sand as easily as Nok moved through the water.

  The little one turned its head but didn’t look around until it opened its eyes. Sand fell from its eyelids as its gaze suddenly locked on the woman and rushed toward her, letting out squeaking hisses.

  As the newly hatched babe reached the woman, its path was blocked by the elevated pathway. She bent down and, with great care, lifted it up before taking her leave.

  Stunned, Kenneth turned to Split and asked, “Erm... she didn’t just steal that baby, right?”

  Looking completely unbothered by the sight, she replied, “That was the hatchling's first choice and the most important. No one is allowed to make it for them.”

  “Doesn’t seem like much of a choice if you ask me. Of course, a babe would instinctually rush to the first thing it saw,” Kenneth replied.

  “It chose her like the little girl chose you. It is nature, pure and true, the oldest law that never was written. Do you understand?” she questioned, looking at him as her stoic visage became intense.

  Feeling he wouldn’t get far by trying to argue with her, Kenneth simply held his tongue and nodded his head.

  She looked at him for a moment, perhaps trying to gauge if he truly understood as she wanted him to. After a moment of silence, she suddenly began walking toward the door the woman had left from, saying not a single word.

  ‘She probably just gave up,’ Kenneth believed because what could she tell about him when he wore a mask? But still, in the back of his mind, he wondered if she’d seen something.

  As Split slowly opened the door, the sound of a large gathering of voices could be faintly heard.

  ‘We aren’t back up just yet, are we?’ Kenneth wondered as he walked through the open doorway and stood in awe.

  They hadn’t made its top side; instead, they were in an underground city that brimmed with life with what he could tell were just ordinary people who went about their day working, cleaning, playing games, taking care of children, and everything else.

  It was a complete contrast to the village above, filled with strong fighters carrying weapons of every kind, some looking for any reason to fight.

  Well, except for those who were actually in a fight, children and adults alike, with a crowd watching and some straight up walking up to someone and slapping them.

  “Err... isn’t it someone’s job to stop all that fighting and basic bitchslapping?” Kenneth asked.

  “They are having fun fighting, and there is always someone to step in. And how else do you say hello?” Split said.

  “Normally with a “Hello.” “Kenneth sarcastically replied as he took a second look and realized there didn’t seem to be any force behind the slaps, and considering their serrated fangs, there wasn’t anyone bleeding in the fights. Perhaps it’s just culture shock.

  “This way,” Split said, catching his attention as she walked off.

  With a short jog, he caught up to her, though he did lack behind every now and again, unable to tear his eyes off the view of the underground village.

  It was a marvel to witness giant triangular pillars that sprouted from the ground both straight and diagonally to interlock and bear the weight of the ceiling above. One glimmering with beauty that radiated from glinting colorful crystals, mirroring the aurora borealis.

  Suddenly, Kenneth came to a stop, crashing into Split, but with the hard muscles, it might as well have been a wall, “Sorry.”

  “...”

  She didn’t respond, and as he walked around, he doubted she’d even acknowledged he’d walked into her as she, instead, stared at a pyramid building, this one white and with a line of Nok outside it.

  She let out a hiss and continued walking, entering it much to the discontent of those in line who thought she was skipping ahead. Before they could voice any complaints, their gaze landed on him, and everyone grew rather silent.

  Inside wasn’t particularly interesting, a couple of tables, chairs, and some glowing crystals, yet their luminous glow was dwarfed somewhat by a pair of glowing hands that closed an oozing gash.

  The hands belonged to a man with rust-colored scales and emerald-colored eyes who had a slightly narrow snout and was dressed in a white robe, “You are healed; now leave.”

  Kenneth had only heard him speak a single sentence, and his first impression was he sounded arrogant. ‘So this is Nokset.’

  As the man he healed left, Nokset turned and walked up to Split, “Oh, how happy I am to see you again. What is it this time? Are you having pain in your shoulder, your tail splitting even more, or perhaps your scales are ripped or chafed?”

  As he asked the last one, his hand suddenly flipped and stretched toward her in a diagonally downward direction, which had Kenneth slightly shocked at how brazen he was.

  However, no contact was made as a scary hiss from Split had him stop, “Fine, walk bow-legged. I am only doing what I’m good for.”

  Split grabbed one of the nearby chairs and dragged it with her to the corner of the room, where she took a seat, “That’s Black Beak, a healer unlike you, Nokset.”

  At the mention of him, Nokset, for the first time, tore his head away from Split and stared at Kenneth.

  The silence between the two persisted for a short while before the roped man erupted, “I am NOT letting that... thing get in my way! Take it to the other side of the village!”

  “It’s the commander’s orders,” Split simply replied in a dull tone.

  Mumbling under his breath, his scales continued to grow slightly lighter by the moment as he turned to Kenenth and poked the tip of his mask, “Listen here, Beak, if you have to be here, don’t get in my way!”

  “I’m only here to help,” Kenneth clarified.

  “Then do so by being quiet and watching how I heal. You might learn something,” He snapped.

  Already feeling a headache coming, though it was from the heat or him, Kenneth couldn’t tell, though to save himself the trouble, he decided to just step back and wait for him to become exhausted.

  His scales changed from lighter to darker, and he turned his head so quickly to meet the next one in the line outside that Kenneth thought his neck might snap. Though even if it had, he doubted Nokset would notice with how focused he was on the woman who’d just entered.

  “So lovely to see you again and that strong body,” Nokset said with glee in his voice as he walked up to her and began groping her muscular arm and chest. “What is it this time? Your arm? Your mouth?"

  "You know what it is,” The woman replied with defiance in her tone.

  Nokset let his smile grow as he grabbed the neck of the womans tunic and said in a superior-sounding voice, “I want to hear you say it.”

  The display felt like a shakedown, and the question of whether this was some kind of social thing like slapping someone to say “hello” crossed Kenneth’s mind, stopping him from saying something right then and there. Yet the woman's response made him feel unsettled.

  “My thighs and slit are burning; please heal them,” she said; the defiance pushed down almost like the woman was swallowing it whole until only a rageful meek tone came out.

  With little delay, Nokset reached underneath her tunic, which made the woman flinch slightly, “Have I told you healing works best when in direct contact with a wound, and it’s rarely only the scales, but also the flesh, most often after having laid an egg, or with someone else?”

  The woman gave no response, only glancing away to the side until it was over.

  Practically every instinct Kenneth had as a doctor revolted at what he saw. Yes, a doctor would often have to be necessarily intimate with a patient, but this... was wrong. He looked to Split in hopes she might offer some insight into whether this was just a cultural thing.

  Yet all he could glean from her was cold indifference, as her eyes solely focused on him.

  It didn’t get better with the next patients as Nokset’s behavior persisted, and it didn’t matter whether you were a man or woman; it was the same.

  Eventually, whether it was some weird cultural or social thing, Kenneth had had enough.

  “Alright, that does it,“ He said, determinedly walking out of the building and looking around for a second before turning to face the line of Nok, most of whom had their eyes on him. “Listen up, my name is Kenneth, and I’m a healer!

  “Now, full disclosure: I don’t heal with magic, so my kind of healing is going to be slower, probably somewhat painful, but I’ll act with decorum and keep any unnecessary comments to myself! I’ll be down the alley if anyone is interested!”

  He turned to walk down the set alley Split, keeping close by, but Nokset was quick to comment, standing in the doorway and sniggering, “Did I hear you right? You don’t have healing magic?! How sa-!”

  Before he could finish his sentence, over half of the line was already halfway down the ally, leaving Nokset stunned, standing in silence with his mouth open and scales brightening.

  Turning around, Kenneth felt slightly surprised that such a large crowd had followed him in here, thinking he shouldn’t have been as he asked, “Okay then, who’s first?”