Chapter 15Charne   Unable to see what the valley held due to the thick mists that obscured all site of its contents from above, where Alissa and Jonah were, they looked at each other questioningly. Since the road curved north then back to the west where it vanished down into the thick mists, they could see little option but to press onward. Before moving into the mists both Alissa and Jonah prepared by getting their guns ready to be drawn and fired quickly if necessary.

  The mist enveloped them, obscuring their vision to the point that they could barely make out each other’s form, as even the road had vanished from sight beneath their feet. The couple stopped and, as a precaution got off their cycles, then grabbed a length of rope that they had in their packs. After tying each end to one another they pressed onward, walking their cycles instead of riding. They could hear strange noises as they walked that sounded like creatures roaming around the mist as if looking for something. They heard growling in the distance and even a loud roar that sounded as if the creature emitting it was very rge. However, no matter how much commotion they heard in the mist, nothing ever seemed to get any closer or further away from where they currently were. Several times they found themselves wandering off of the road, but luckily the stone road beneath their feet had a distinct feel and they quickly were able to find their way back with little trouble. Gradually, the mists began to lessen, revealing the ruins of a rge city made of stone and overrun by the jungle along its edges.

  The buildings in the city were, for the most part, short with ft roofs. Occasionally there was a building that would rise above the others. At the center of the city was a huge pyramid that stood towering over all the other buildings as the top of it vanished into the mists that formed a natural cloudy roof to the valley.

  As they drew nearer that could see that numerous buildings on the outskirts of the city were in shambles as the jungle had completely recimed them, tearing them down with the vines and roots of the multitude of jungle pnts. They followed the roadway into the city, were once again riding their cycles now that they were out of the oppressive fog.

  The streets and alleys that branched off to the side of the main roadway that they had been following were choked with pnt life, while many of the buildings were in poor shape from centuries of disuse and the jungle overgrowth.

  Seeing that the little bit of light from the sun that managed to permeate the mists to the ruins below was fading, the couple set out to find a suitable building to make camp in for the night. After some searching they found a building that seemed to still be reasonably sound and actually had a stone door that was still intact after all the wear from time’s slow, inevitable creep. Pulling the heavy door open, Jonah found that the inside of the building was retively free of pnt life and molds. Satisfied, the couple drove their cycles inside and shut the heavy door behind them.

  They had to use the mps on the cycles to illuminate the front room of the building while they set up camp inside because the small, empty windows to the outside did not let enough light through. Soon they had a fire going that lit the room cheerfully.

  “Well,” Jonah started as they settled down to cook supper. “I think we have found Charne, my love.”

  “I agree,” Alissa said. “Though I have to say, this city appears to be in much better shape I was expecting, especially considering the way that this jungle started off looking when we entered it. I thought we were going to be lucky to find even the slightest trace of a city so I am pleasantly surprised at what we found so far. So, where do you think would be the best pce for us to start looking for clues to lead us to the tomb?”

  “Hmm, I don't know, there is a lot of ground to cover here though, the best pce to start might be with that rge pyramid that is in the center of this city. Hopefully there is a door around the base of it because I personally do not feel like climbing that thing.”

  Alissa nodded in agreement. She didn’t enjoy the prospect of climbing such a structure either.

  “Well, as you said we have a lot of ground to cover,” Alissa said, looking at Jonah. “So, why don't we make our way there tomorrow while searching the buildings along the way that aren’t completely dipidated to see if there is anything that can help us? That way, hopefully, we can avoid having to climb that pyramid and be on our way that much sooner. We can start with this building tonight before we go to sleep if you wish.”

  “That sounds like a pn to me,” Jonah replied.

  Together, they grabbed their hand torches and began to search the building that they were pnning to spend the night in.

  As they made their way deeper into the building they were surprised at how empty the building was of all traces of furniture or, for that matter, any other signs that anyone had ever used the building before. The floors beyond the front room were coated in a thick yer of dust that was kicked up into a thick cloud with their passage. As soon as they made sure that the building was empty of anything of importance, they returned to the front room and id out their bedrolls before going to sleep.

  In the night they were awoken by the sounds of scratching at the door as if something was pawing at the base of it, trying to dig underneath the door. Alissa pointed to one of the windows, indicating that Jonah should give her a boost up to it so that she could poke her head out to see what was causing the noise. When Jonah lifted her up, she looked out and to her surprise she saw a rge, shaggy, bck dog that looked up at her with his floppy pink tongue hanging out. Giggling, she told Jonah to lower her back down and he did.

  “There is nothing out there.” She told him trying to keep a straight face.

  “Really...” Jonah said, his face clearly showing that he did not believe her.

  “If you don't believe me, why don't you open the door then? Are you afraid?”

  She continued to tease him about being afraid of what was on the other side of the door until Jonah finally went to open it. After he got the door open, Jonah poked his head outside. The dog was sitting patiently outside the door and gave him a friendly woof when it saw him. Pulling his head back inside, he looked at Alissa.

  “There is a dog outside.” He stated simply, his expression ft.

  Alissa burst out into a fit of giggles at the bnk look that he was giving her and nodded.

  He looked back outside and the dog was still there sitting patiently as if waiting for something.

  “Are you waiting on something, Mr. Doggie?” He said looking at the dog questioningly.

  The dog woofed again while continuing to sit, tongue hanging out as he panted with his tail wagging.

  “Would you like to come inside?” Jonah asked, looking at the dog as if he expected it to start talking.

  The dog stood up with the invitation and walked inside, bumping into Jonah, almost knocking him down, as he crossed the threshold. Alissa giggled at the exchange as the dog came and sat down next to her, looking at her expectantly.

  “Are you hungry?” Alissa said to the dog in a cute voice.

  The dog woofed in response.

  She gave the dog some of the food that they had left over from supper earlier that night and the dog ate it down quickly. When it finished, it id down by the fire and went to sleep. Noticing that the dog appeared to have already fallen asleep, Alissa and Jonah looked at one another and shrugged before ying down and going back to sleep themselves.

  The next morning the couple, with their new canine friend, started searching the ruins slowly making their way to the pyramid that y at the center of the city. All of the buildings that they searched turned up nothing and, after a mostly uneventful day, they reached the pyramid. Walking around the base of the building revealed no entrances and the couple decided to call if a day before climbing the stairs that ran up the side the pyramid, presumably to the top.

  Upon returning to their camp, they prepared dinner for themselves while making a little extra to guarantee that the dog would have plenty to eat. Over the course of the day Alissa had taken a liking to the dog, which seemed friendly enough, and gave him the name Mr. Waffles. The dog did not seem to mind the new name. As they had been searching the city that day, the couple had discussed the various pces Mr. Waffles could have come from. They wondered if he had owners that were in the area because he seemed fairly domesticated and if he did have owners, were they still around or, for that matter, alive.

  The next morning, they decided to move over one street and search the buildings on that street for clues that would help them in their quest. In the third building, a rge residential looking structure, Mr. Waffles started the whine, moving toward a partially colpsed portion of the building. Jonah, curious at what had upset the dog, noticed that there were markings that looked like the colpsed portion had been dug at by some animal, most likely a dog. Straining, Jonah pried a rge stone sb up, revealing a small human hand. Alissa gasped in shock and Mr Waffles began to howl a long sorrowful howl that echoed throughout the building at the sight of the small hand. Jonah dug deeper into the rubble, eventually revealing the upper torso of a small girl and a rger female hand that was outstretched as if to have been pushing the child forward. Alissa said a quick prayer for the spirit of the child and the person who had obviously tried to save the child by attempting to push her out of harm’s way. Jonah tried to dig deeper, but the building gave a shudder and fine bits of stone and dust rained down on them from above.

  Quickly, the couple and Mr. Waffles ran out of the building and, just in time too. The whole structure colpsed raising a cloud of dust into the air, burying the remains of the child and adult underneath tons of rubble. For a long time, Mr. Waffles sat beside the colpsed building howling sorrowfully. The couple waited, not knowing how long he would sit there. After several minuets, Jonah turned and started to walk away, telling Alissa that they needed to move on to get as much done as they could before night fell again. Nodding, Alissa turned to follow. Together they left Mr. Waffles to his howling and moved onward to try to get as much searching done as they could.

  They had cleared the next two buildings before Mr. Waffles joined them once again. He looked sad to Alissa, but she figured that was to be expected since that had probably been his former family. She petted him as he came trotting up to them on the street after they came out of the second building and he gave a halfhearted wag of his tail. By the time the group had worked their way to the base of the pyramid it was te in the day and, once again not quite feeling like tackling the task of climbing the stairs to see if there was a way inside, they headed back to their camp, spirits still low from the depressing find earlier that day.

  #

  The next morning everyone seemed to have somewhat cheered up from the aftermath of the gruesome discovery the day before. They decided to just go straight to the pyramid instead of working their way there. When they reached the pyramid, they stood for a moment looking up the side of it to where it disappeared into the mists above.

  “Are you ready for this?” Alissa asked Jonah with a silly grin on her face.

  “Why?” Jonah asked looking at her and, seeing her expression. “What do you have in mind?”

  “Well,” Alissa said, giggling a little. “I was thinking... that... I... would... race you to the top!” She finished speaking as she took off climbing the stairs as fast as she could. Mr. Waffles followed behind her, tail wagging as they left Jonah behind at the base, shaking his head.

  Quickly she ran up the first fifty stairs before slowing down a little to conserve energy. Looking back, she saw that Jonah was taking his time climbing the stairs and Mr. Waffles was hot on her trail. It took her a while, even at quick pace, to reach the area that the mist closed in over the steps, obscuring them sight even beneath her feet as she climbed. As she reached the mists, Alissa had to drop to her hands and knees to navigate that stairs safely. As she climbed, after what seemed to take forever, the mists finally thinned and revealed what looked like a small temple up ahead at the top. She noticed that it seemed that the mists were parted only around where the temple was because there was mist below from the way she had come and there was mist above the temple as well. All around the temple were clouds of mist, completely cutting it off from the rest of the world.

  As she reached the st step, Alissa sat down to wait on the others. Mr. Waffles arrived just a few minutes after Alissa and sat down beside her, panting. Jonah arrived soon after, looking little worse for wear, and sat to the other side of her.

  “Wow,” he said, breathing hard. “I did not think those stairs were ever going to end.”

  Alissa giggled at him as he sat there breathing hard.

  “I won you know.” She stated looking at him. “That means I you owe me now.”

  “I owe you?” Jonah asked looking at her incredulously.

  “Yes.” She replied snuggling up close him and speaking in a sultry voice. “And I pn on collecting my reward tonight my love.”

  “Oh... It is that kind of reward then, is it?”

  “Uh huh.”

  “I think I can manage that then, my love” Jonah replied smiling with a twinkle in his eye.

  He got to his feet, helping Alissa to hers before pulling her in close and kissing her deeply. They spent a moment in each other’s arms before moving into the temple to see what they could find.