Since both women agreed on trying to get the symbols to shine on the path. Sparrow tried just pulling the runes into place, but it still didn't budge. They looked around, but were at a loss.
"Do we need to try some of the other paths?" Val suggested.
"We are trapped here." Sparrow replied disheartened. "I don't think we could go investigating any of the other paths."
Val paced around. She had too agree with Sparrow's assessment. It would stand to reason that the tools to open the door are here. This place was designed to trap a person. Would there not be ways to get out?
In her frustration, Val kicked a larger rock off to the side. Her kick caused several rocks to slide down. Val lost her balance, which caused her to find a new discovery.
Some of the rocks that fell down had a glow matching those in the runes above. Sparrow seemed to notice it as well, so they each gathered them, until they had every glowing rock in sight.
"Well, now we have glowing rocks." Val took a breath. "What does that mean?"
Both of them looked around. There didn't seem to be any receptacle. Sparrow tried levitating the rocks in a formation matching the ones above. There was a bit of a reaction. Slowly, a light formed in the middle, and the rocks floated on their own.
"I have made these mimic the runes. But it seemed they have a life of their own!" Sparrow exclaimed. "Do you think you could make this "enlighten" symbol?"
Val signaled that she could. She hesitantly reached for a rock. When she did that, the corresponding rune did the same. Sparrow and Val looked in amazement, but before long, Val continued the task at hand. The rocks and runes continued to rotate, so the work was rather troublesome.
"There, I think that's it." Val took a step back.
Sparrow, Val, and Lycos held their breathes. It felt like an eternity as the runes spun. Because of their positions, it formed the intended symbol. They only had to wait for it to align with the paths on the ground.
After waiting for so long, they finally saw the alignment. As soon as the symbols matched, a bright light formed. They were blinded, but they could hear the door finally open. Without thinking, they ran towards it.
When their eyes adjusted, they were no longer in the cavern from before. It was a lush meadow. It was peaceful and calm; making one wish to stay in it's confines to escape ones troubles.
"I thought you said there were three trials. We seem to be outside of the cave now." Val voiced out her confusion.
"We are still in the cave, but we must be in some sort of spell." Sparrow answered.
"Well, it doesn't seem like such a bad spell." Val muttered to herself.
'Do not get too comfortable.'
That inner voice chimed in again. It is bothering that Val could not make sense of it. But she decided to not put too much thought into it's warning. Though, it has never lead her astray; the feeling of contentment was starting to take over.
"I can't see anything that resembles a path or a door." Sparrow appraise as she looked around. "Do you notice anything?"
"Not really." Val sat on a bit of grass. "Why don't we just take a rest?"
"That sounds nice, but I'm unsure if we should." Sparrow started to sound a little sluggish.
The party began to feel an overwhelming sense of fatigue. They walked for a ways, but it was hard to continue. They decided to enjoy the bit of rest they could get, and they eventually fell asleep.
Though the sleep came quickly, it was not peaceful. Val felt as though something was latching onto her. She was paralyzed, but was mildly aware. She wanted to speak out, but no words came out.
'I warned you.' The voice complained.
'It was so hard to keep our eyes open. Could you?' Val snapped back in her mind.
'I did, actually.'
If she could, she would roll her eyes. But she was surprised that she could interact with the voice. Usually, it would give her a warning, and go away. She decided to test it.
'If you are so knowledgeable, what is the danger?'
'It is not for me to tell.'
Val really could scream. If only she wasn't paralyzed. It seems that she would have to do most of the heavy lifting in this situation.
'If you are unable to tell me what I'm facing, could you help me wake up?' Val asked tentatively.
'That is a better question.' The voice answered back. 'Before I answer, what do you feel?'
What does she feel? can't this mysterious voice not tell that she's feeling a great amount of fear!?! But she pushed that thought to the back of her mind, and focused.
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A/N: Well, I sort of abandoned things, didn't I? I attempted to do national novel writing month in Nov, but failed to finish that story before the end of the month, and then the holidays and such happened. I hope that people still read this, but I'll try to alternate weeks on this and my other story. Thanks for checking this out :)