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Chapter 18 - Underground beauty

The cellar was still wet from the two days of rain. Though the sun shone brightly above, is wasn't hard to see that it would take quite a bit of time for the ground to dry. With the sun shining as bright as it was it was likely that Faye should be able to climb out by mid day. Until then, she could only wait.

Faye sat by for a long while patiently waiting. Patiently for her. She paced and grumbled to no one. She cursed and tried climbing out early, only to receive a few cuts across her abdomen from some sharp roots.

Finally, she resigned herself to waiting. That didn't mean she'd just sit there in the mean time, however. Faye thought over the tunnel she'd ventured into before. Although she'd been spooked last night when traversing it, she really thought she was a bit to hasty in her retreat now that she had time to think it over. If the tunnel really was an entrance to the Underdark, it didn't appear to be used much. This city had been gone for quite a while, it seemed. Which meant it was likely that that entryway into the Underdark was unused for quite some time.

Although Faye wasn't sure of what sort of significance the Underdark entrance played during her time period, it seemed to have fallen out of use in the meantime.

Because of this, Faye decided to try heading into the tunnel once again. This time, she wanted to try the right tunnel at the fork instead of the left. At the very least, if she didn't find anything useful, she wouldn't be bored waiting to be able to climb out of the godforsaken cellar.

Slowly, Faye walked further down the tunnel. She paused for a short while at the first fork, then continued with her plan to head to the right this time. She moved faster than before, though still cautious. She listened intently for any signs that something or someone was near. The eerie silence was all that greeted her. The tunnel did not have a uniform size, it widened and thinned the further it went. Sometimes it was dozens of feet wide, while other times it was barely wide enough for her to fit through.

It didn't take long for Faye to find a reason to stop, however. There, branching off from the tunnel was another cave. She'd only been walking for less than an hour since heading down this path. That wasn't what caused her pause, though. What caused Faye to pause in her steps was the fact that there, way down the tunnel branching off, Faye could see light. It wasn't much, it wouldn't have been visible if it weren't for how dark the rest of the tunnel was. But there, towards the back, Faye could see a faint bit of light.

This was alarming for many reasons. First of all, most things within the Underdark had no eyes or were adept at seeing in pitch black, they had no use for light. Because of this, Faye felt her heartbeat begin to pound excitedly in her chest. She did not head forward, however. If this light was manmade, how did it survive for so long without maintenance? Why was there a light here? This sent alarm bells ringing through her head.

What if this light wasn't to help whatever held it to see, but instead was a lure to bring in prey? What if it was a trap left for those that chose the wrong tunnel to fall into?

There were a number of possibilities for the light in the darkened tunnel, and no way for Faye to know the true purpose without heading towards it.

But, that was risky. A well designed trap could be deadly, an old trap that breaks after being set off could be even worse. If it is something hoping to lure in prey, Faye was unsure how to fight it. Or if she even could. Those that called the Underdark home were rather foreign to those that walked under the sun above.

Faye bit her lip as she turned to look in the direction she came. It was safest to head back. But...

She took a deep breath and stepped toward the light in the branching tunnel. Without risk, there could be no reward. She wanted to change her fate. It wouldn't be possible if she only ever played it safe.

Slowly, Faye gingerly stepped closer to the light.

The tunnel remained relatively constant in shape in size as she walked. Her lantern light was low, the shadows it cast against the rocks were ghostly and were the cause of more than a couple frights. But still, Faye continued forward. She felt as if the air around her had begun to heat up, but wasn't sure if that was true or not. Sweat dripped from her brow, streaking down her face to drop from her chin to the ground. Faye kept her breath as stead as possible as she made her way forward, but wanting to alert any creature to her presence if she could help it. Her ears strained for any indication that something was moving.

Slowly, she reached a small out cove in the stone that seemed to be the source of the light. She slowly drew closer to peer inside.

Faye's eyes widened as she took in the incredible sight before her. There, standing dozens of feet tall, were strange luminescent stalks. They seemed to shimmer in the darkness, glowing green and blue. There were a cluster of them, and seemed to be more further in the cave, around the bend.

For a moment Faye forgot her caution and took a step forward in awe. She'd never seen anything quite like this before.

She hurried to gather herself, however. She slowly moved forward, within a few feet of the closest stalk. It seemed to be some sort of plant, though Faye knew that shouldn't have been possible. Was it...fungus? But she'd never seen any fungus like this before. Images of brown and red mushrooms flowed through her mind. Comparing those to the stalks before her was hardly even possible.

It was like comparing an elf to a dwarf!

As she admired the beauty of the stalks before her, Faye reached out to feel the one closest.