Page 53 of Forsaken Secrets

Could he handle this? I'd experienced enough close calls that it didn't bother me as much, but he was still a novice.

"You going to be okay going down there again?"

His lips twitched, and he grimaced. "I'm fine."

Lynk looked between the two of us, his expression serious. "We can always find another way down, Eli. There's no shame in admitting that something is beyond you."

Eli's brow climbed. Those were the last words I ever imagined coming out Lynk's mouth. Him admitting something was beyond him would be almost as unlikely as seeing a dragon in real life!

"I'm saying it's fine." Eli pulled an anchor from his pack. "Let's do this."

Lynk shrugged, then hammered a few anchors into a stone nearby, and we hooked up our ropes.

Eli did the same, his pallor almost back to normal.

If he wanted a career in relic hunting, this was probably the best decision, but it couldn't be easy.

"You ready?" I asked, adrenaline making my body hum with anticipation.

Eli gave me a thumbs up, and Lynk just shrugged then dropped.

Taking a deep breath, I let my body fall.

Thiswas how climbing should be.

Hair whipped around my face and I pressed a lever to make myself slow. Gods, it was nice having the right tools!

Lynk was right. What was just a statue and a couple columns the day before was now part of an archway and an opening! "Be careful," I muttered.

Lynk dropped into the opening. "I'll make sure it's safe."

"You'll find all the good stuff, you mean," Eli grumbled, moving slower. He was still pale, but his green eyes glittered with excitement.

The next drop would be even easier, and soon he'd be an addict like me.

I laughed and followed Lynk in, dropping to the floor in a loud whoosh that sent dust billowing up around us. It carried with it the musty earthen smells of a room long forgotten.

The resulting chorus of the three of us hacking up our lungs was loud enough to wake any creatures who had claimed the area as a home.

I rubbed the grit out of my eyes and pulled the lyphos lamp from my pack, tapping the glass to wake it up.

Two orange glows dotted the room where Eli and Lynk woke theirs as well.

"Looks like you were right, lordling." Lynk's voice was even more raspy than normal as he pointed at charred bookshelves stretching from floor to ceiling for the entire length of the room. "I don't think we'll be finding much down here."

Some kind of fire had destroyed everything …

"Do you think whatever did this also destroyed the city?" Eli asked.

"No." Lynk's voice was quiet. "The city was something else …"

"Surely some artifacts survived, though? Maybe no relics, but something?" I said. "We should split up and see what we can find."

"No. We don't know what's down here. You'd better stick close to me."

"You worrying about us, old man?" said Eli.

Lynk shook his head and strode off, muttering something about impulsive young mages.

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