Breakfast is the usual affair. Paolo and Donna, between them, had made sure we were well supplied for at least our first few days. While I had been trudging along, wrapped up in my innermost headaches and conflicts, Elara, ever practical, had mended her broken arrows and made new ones to replace those that were beyond repair.

  I was actually quite surprised at how much I had missed by simply not being aware of what was going on around me.

  “Last night,” Elara was telling me as we prepared to move out, “Naomi’s astral walk showed her a path about a mile ahead.”

  I looked at the young girl with interest.

  “So what was up this path then, young lady?” I ask her.

  “Don’t know,” she said with a grin. “That’s what makes it so fun to go find out.”

  I gave Elara a questioning look.

  “All she could see and describe to me was it glowed—something up that path was glowing brightly, but she couldn’t see what.”

  “So, a puzzle. Any ideas on what we might be looking for?”

  Elara just shrugged.“We need to be careful, as it will be something magical to cause that sort of whiteout. But it could be anything, from a small item to a building.”

  “Nothing like a mystery to get the juices flowing in the morning then,” I say, eliciting a giggle from Naomi.

  About an hour after we headed down the track, we found the small trail leading away from the river and making its way towards a stand of trees and the gently sloping valley side in the distance.

  “So how far up this trail was your glow?” I enquire as I check my weapons are all loose in their scabbards.

  “Not sure,” Naomi answers with a shrug. “I can fly really fast, so it’s hard to say how far in walk time.”

  “Ok then, let’s take it easy and not rush, at least until we know what we are getting into.”

  I look to where Misty is sat grooming herself just ahead.

  ‘Want to scout ahead, girl?’ I ask her, to which she looks my way, gives her nethers one last polish for good luck, then disappears nimbly into the brush.

  I notice Elara has her bow in hand, so, as ready as we will ever be, I lead the way after Misty up the narrow track.

  The trail was a bit tricky at first, obviously little if ever used these days. It soon degenerated into little more than a game trail. In fact, I often spotted animal prints in the softer patches of mud that occurred at times.

  At one point, I crouched down by a track. It reminded me of a rabbit’s paw, so I assume funnips are in the area. Not far away are the faint traces of those I had seen Misty leave.

  ‘I hope you aren’t getting distracted with hunting.’I feel a contemptuous snort in my mind as her answer.

  ‘OK, as if I could doubt your professionalism.’ I shake my head at the thought.

  She is a good cat.

  The distant murmuring of the river fades as the sounds of the trees take over.

  Although the area is far from densely wooded, the whisper of the spring breeze through the trees adds a gentle sigh to the birdsong that seems to surround us.

  I gather up the odd plant as we go and notice Elara doing the same, instructing Naomi on them as she goes.

  Smelling fresh mint, I soon locate a healthy patch that can add a nice note to our tea tonight.

  I start to feel the movement of mana—not like a spell, but different, as if the air itself is starting to get richer.

  Looking back, I see Elara a few feet behind. She has also paused. Seeing my look, she nods in agreement. She feels it too.

  “Any ideas?”

  “Not yet, but whatever Naomi discovered last night is nearby.”

  I put the mint in my pack and settle it neatly out of the way.

  ‘Anything, Misty?’

  I wait a few moments before she comes back at me.

  ‘Dusty building.’

  ‘Any dangers?’ I ask her.I hear her mental laugh.

  ‘Spiders?’ she questions.

  ‘Damn cat,’ I grouse before stepping back to the others.

  “I just had a chat with Misty.” Naomi’s eyes widen, her mouth forming a little ‘O,’ while Elara just looks inquisitive.

  I must have forgotten to mention Misty’s talent to Naomi, I realise.

  “Anyway, up ahead is some old building. From what I can gather, it seems deserted bar a few bugs and things.”

  Elara nods.

  “Do you think it could be the source of this increase in ambient mana?” I ask her.

  he thinks for a moment.

  “If it is, it would explain why all Naomi could see was a bright glow. With her talent only just beginning to develop, the mana in this region is enough to overwhelm it.”

  “Well, let’s go explore a creepy old building then,” I say, and make a ghostly moaning groan at them, lifting my arms as I pretend to be all spooky.

  Elara gives me a playful slap on the arm, and Naomi giggles.

  Through the obscuring trees, the outline of the building makes itself known. It was once white, I would guess, though it is now stained with age and covered in a resplendent coat of moss and ivy. We pause to examine it before moving closer.

  The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

  In shape, it’s a bit like a large enclosed stone gazebo: circular, with a domed roof and a short hall protruding from it that I assume is the entryway. The walls are made of large blocks of what may be marble or something similar, its narrow arched windows are evenly spaced around the walls.

  “It makes me feel all burbly inside,” Naomi states, her hand now clasped tightly in Elara’s.

  “That’s the magic in the air,” Elara explains. “Your mana inside is recognising and reacting to the power in the building.”

  “So is the building itself magical, or do you think it’s something within the building?”

  Elara considers my question for a moment or two, then shakes her head.

  “It’s too ambiguous at the moment. It could be either or both.”

  I nod. “Or none of the above.”

  I rub my hands together in anticipation. I can see Misty sat on the steps up to the doorway, so stepping forward, I say,

  “Let’s go exploring then.”

  The ambient mana climbs a bit more, then seems to find a level. But now I can detect something else—as if the mana also contains a flavour, one that I recognise from Elara’s use of magic. I look to her, and she nods in agreement.

  “Nature magic,” she states. “I think this may be a lost shrine.”

  “Am I imagining things, or does it feel old, damaged in some way? Your mana feels fresh and vibrant, but this feels, in some way, off.”

  The way it feels makes my teeth ache.

  ‘What the fuck are you going on about, Del? Teeth ache?’ Why do I always argue with my own thoughts?

  ‘Shut up. You try and describe something you never even knew existed a couple of weeks back,’ I growl.

  “Yes, it’s got a nature attunement, but it does feel not quite right.”

  ‘See, Elara gets it.’

  Naomi seems fidgety and stands very close to us.

  “It’s bad but also good, like too many sweet treats.”

  ‘So that’s why your teeth ache,’ my alter ego laughs at me.I ignore him.

  “Let’s go check it out,” I say decisively. “Misty doesn’t seem overly concerned.”

  The building’s steps led up towards a dark arched doorway. One door lay on the ground, the wood supporting its hinges having long since rotted away. The rest of the door didn’t look far beyond this state. The other door was ajar, seemingly jammed against a mix of leaf litter and general woodland debris gathered over innumerable years.

  Peering in, we could see Misty was right: lots of dust and not a few cobwebs. Light made its way in through the narrow slit windows, casting bright beams speckled with glinting motes stirring in the air as if disturbed by our very presence.

  “Shall we?” I invite the others.

  As we step in, the air feels heavy, as though we had entered a stuffy room that hadn’t seen an open window in years. This in itself is strange. The doors were open, broken in fact, and though the windows were narrow and omitted little light, they had never been glazed. The air should have been easily circulating, yet it was stagnant. It smelt musty and a little mouldy.

  Through some of the windows, ivy vines had made their way inside, as if searching out their own little piece of the past from among the aged stones.

  A scuttle of little feet caused Misty’s ears to prick up.

  ‘Dinner?’ she enquired.

  ‘Maybe for you, girl. Sounded a bit too much like a mouse or similar to tempt my appetite.’

  I laughed at her disdainful look.

  ‘If you want to go hunt it, fine, but let me know if there is anything dangerous ahead.’

  With that, she jumped ahead and disappeared into the gloom on silent paws.

  The entry hall was maybe 20 feet long, and I regretted my comments about the spooky stuff.

  It was damn creepy. And we hadn’t even got to the main chamber yet.

  If this was a shrine, I sure wouldn’t want to worship here. I might wake up things I would rather stayed sleeping.

  Taking a breath I am pretty sure was mirrored by the others, I stepped forward.

  At the end of the corridor was another set of doors, these still intact with one open enough for us to squeeze through.

  The chamber was circular and about 30 feet across. In the centre was a round pool, mostly dry with the exception of some puddles left by recent rain that had made its way in through some displaced roof tiles.

  In the centre of it is a broken statue rising from a low plinth.

  I heard Elara’s breath catch in her throat.

  “What is it?” I asked, every nerve tense and alert.

  “It’s Myrrith, goddess of nature and balance,” she paused.

  “She is revered by elves, among others, and it is from her that my own magic is derived.”

  “But she’s broken,” Naomi said sadly.

  “I know, angel,” said Elara. “Something happened here that wasn’t good.”

  Looking around the chamber, it became clearer by the moment that this place had not succumbed to the mere ravages of time.

  It had been deliberately desecrated.

  “The bad, good feeling I get inside?”

  “Yes, Naomi, that feeling. The good is what remains from my god’s presence. The bad—whatever happened to her.”

  I could get a good idea of how the statue should look from the broken remains. She would have once depicted a beautiful woman with her head adorned with antlers and her hands holding floral wreaths and other growing things.

  Her arms were broken off. One antler also lay smashed on the floor, partially ground into dust.

  On the walls and floor around us were daubed arcane symbols that seemed to distort and flex, an effect that made me feel nauseous to look at.

  They were dark, maybe an ink made of soot, perhaps something far worse.

  I looked at my companion. Tears ran silently down her face.

  Naomi looked confused and a bit afraid. I put my hand on her shoulder in reassurance.

  I felt Misty nudge my mind and turned her way.

  She was on the other side of the central pool. Beside her was a trapdoor, its dark maw lying open.

  From its depths, a fetid stench seemed to rise, and I heard a clicking that was most definitely, not the patter of rodent feet.