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Why was there a path here? It made zero sense. If only I could go and then backtrack if it was a problem. This was not a game, I could not save my progress here, and then just come back if I died. I did not have a good feeling about this.
I decided to ignore this Gem and Ghen, and backtrack to find another path. I knew I had several hours of travel before I would come to the path to D'ni. I came to find the Path, not some wild gem dangled before my face by a madman.
I wandered for three hours with no sign of Ghen, did he give up? No, not a chance, this was Ghen I was dealing with, he was not going to give up. I could not shake the feeling that he had something sinister in mind. was he trying to hide something? Did I find somethings that I was not suppose to find in my other adventures? I had seen ages that no one else knew existed. were these ages written by Ghen? I may never know, but right now this was not my concern. I wanted to get to the City.
After a few more hours I smelled the faint, unmistakable odor of sulfur. I added more light to my path with my flashlight. Up to this point I was travelling with firemarble light. I wiped away layers of dirt and dust. Marble floor. I did not know I was here, since the centuries of accumulation had muffled my footfalls. The sulfur smell should be stronger.
I followed the path to a sheer drop. Where should have been a bubbling lake of lava, there was darkness, with just a few tiny cracks of sulfur steam seeping through. The bridge ahead was as it should be, except the section that was broken, was now fixed. Instead of a narrow piece of D'ni stone, there was very new construction. Who had been here? I did not know if I wanted to know the answer to that question.
I steeled my nerve and pressed on across the bridge. In a brief time, in relation to the past hours, I was in a cool cavern. It was time to rest...if I could.
Sleep came fast and hard, but not unhindered by dreams. Bahro screeching, drills whirring, linking sounds, voices. They seemed so real. I woke in a startle. That last linking sound was so real.....someone had been here. There was a small fire burning, with a pot of coffee brewing. The unmistakable aroma was welcome, but....who? Certainly not Ghen. This was current century supplies.
I decided that anyone who would bring me coffee, was not an enemy. I savored the coffee, cleaned up the site, and was going to douse the fire, but thought it better to let it burn. It was not in any danger of spreading, and I may have to come back.
One more day of travel and I will be in D'ni, if all goes well. Still no sign of Ghen. That had me puzzled. I still had a very uneasy feeling. I was in unfamiliar territory. All I had to go by was Ghen's journal. I was expecting a difficult path. Ghen had described fallen rock, missing floor, and a massive pool filled with water from above. After almost two hours of travel, I was shocked to find a clear path. The ledge that circled the cavern was clear of all dirt, and a railing had been placed where it was more precarious. I descended then climbed, passing one tunnel, and then coming to a large one. From Ghens notes the Gate was not far.
As much as I wanted to get there today, I was tired. I figured now was as good a time as any to take a rest. I wanted to be well rested and alert when I reached the southern boundary of the D'ni.
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KI #03313934
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