CHAPTER 165

"Because the old one was discovered by smugglers, you know this," her mother responded. She carved a chunk of granite away with her talons, then crushed it beneath her feet. Abella knelt down to pick up the rubble, then handed the basket to another child, who carried it up the tunnel.

"I still think we should have just chased them off." Abella examined one of the stones that had broken off. It was some kind of gemstone, and she imagined it would sparkle if she could carry it back up to the surface. What little light there was down here didn't do it any justice.

"That is not our way." She could hear the smile in her mother's voice, but decided to say it anyway.

"Instead of chasing them off, maybe we could make friends with them?" It was an old argument, but one she was willing to make every day. She loved watching them, seeing their clothing swish behind them as they walked, hearing their hair rustle in a stiff breeze. What would life be like if she could just befriend one?

"That is also not our way." Her mother put her hand against the stone and frowned. "No more digging on this side. We need to shift."

"Or it will collapse?" Abella asked.

Her mother nodded. "The stone here is strong and stable. We can widen the other side without any issues, but tampering with this would be a gamble."

Abella put her hand against the wall. "How can you tell?"

Her mother smiled. "It's always easiest to hear the Earth Mother's heartbeat through the sturdiest stone. Can you hear it?"

Abella put her ears against the rock and frowned. "I don't hear anything."

"It isn't something you hear with your ears, my gem." Her mother knelt down and took the stone from Abella's hands. "It's something you can only hear with your heart."

The cavern walls were narrow, and she crouched down to crawl inside. So many centuries ago, she had finally learned to hear the beating heart of the Earth Mother. It wasn't a heart at all, but the flow of natural magic through the stone. The magic traveled best through the strongest rock, and she was unnerved by how quiet the tunnel itself was.

Without the open sky above her, she fought off a case of the shivers. Her clan had rarely gone more than a hundred feet into the mountain and she always preferred to be outside if possible.

Up ahead, she could hear Velvet shouting obscenities, but the echoing of the cave made her words unintelligible. Leeds would laugh on occasion, but there was nothing else to be heard.

This troubled Abella, because she knew there should be a whole tribe of Nirumbi beneath the earth. It wasn't long before she crawled over a couple of bodies in the darkness and then moved into a large chamber with a massive column in the middle. The chamber was decorated with glowing stones that had been tossed about the chamber, yet still provided enough illumination to see by.

The column resonated heavily in the silent chamber, and was likely the primary support. All around, she saw the empty abodes of the Nirumbi, along with their dead scattered around. The moisture-laden air was heavy with the smell of blood.

It had been a slaughter. She nudged a Nirumbi with her foot and scowled at the claw marks on its body. How long ago had this been done? There were arrows everywhere, but no sign of who or what killed them.

"Give it back!" Velvet's shrill cry echoed from up above. "Please, I'll do anything!"

Leeds laughed in response.

Abella gritted her teeth. It had to be an egg, nothing else made sense. Instead of scaling the ramp, she started climbing the rock. Her nails sunk easily into the stone surface, allowing her to scale it quickly. The whole time, all she could think about was Velvet's deception.

When she had destroyed Velvet's clutch, the Arachne had been an emotional mess. If it had been a charade, it was a good one. But why fake such a thing when she could have just hidden them in the woods?

Maybe it was bad timing, Abella thought. She had arrived at the barn shortly after they had been laid, and Velvet had only been able to hide one. That didn't make much sense either, because they weren't very large. Velvet could easily have stuffed a few into her pockets.

Velvet's cries right now were that of a terrified mother, filled with rage and worry. She begged and pleaded between shouts of rage, and Abella winced at the sound of gunfire. Hearing the pain in Velvet's voice, Abella continued onward, swearing to kick the Arachne's ass after she saved it.

Beth moved to the sarcophagus and knelt down, her hands on the side. There were chunks of slime smeared all along its edges, which she scooped into her hands. Frowning, she realized she had no idea what to do with it, so promptly wiped her hands on the couch.

"I don't understand." Reggie hopped onto the sarcophagus and sniffed the air. "There was someone here all this time?"

"Are we really surprised?" Beth gestured at the room.

"I guess not." Reggie jumped into the sarcophagus, then slipped on a piece of Opal and landed on his face, causing his crown to fall off. Jenny laughed, but the rat king ignored her.

"What are you doing?" Beth leaned in to help him stand.

"I wanted a closer look at the glyphs. They're heavily enchanted."

She would ask how he could tell, but considering that all of the symbols were glowing, it would be a dumb thing to ask. With a groan, she stood and turned to face Death. "What do you make of all..."

Her voice trailed off. Death was holding a large chunk of slime in his hands, his jaw hanging down as the fire deep in his sockets swirled like miniature tornados. He lifted his gaze to meet hers, and she felt her soul freeze in place as anger washed over her.