Tooth and Bone

Unlike the smooth tunnels, this large cavern was littered with stalactites and stalagmites. They looked like teeth ready to gobble them up without a second thought. 

But that was not all. Along the walls, veins seemed to spider along the rock in every direction. There did not seem to be any method to the madness, but Noble could not help but feel that their existence was inorganic. 

Sarai reached out and touched one of them. "They are warm. It feels powerful but not alive." 

"They look oddly familiar..." Noble took a step back after examining them at close range. "They look like arteries." 

"Blood..." Sarai chewed the inside of her cheek. "I read somewhere the Beast God is also the god of blood..." 

"Then it would make sense that this is his handiwork or the work of his priest." Noble moved into the cavern with her candle to inspect the rest of it. Her senses told her that nothing was moving in the cavern, but there were too many obstructions from the unique features of the hall to discern much else. 

There was a soft rumble, but it ended as quickly as it started. 

'Is it my imagination or are those getting more frequent?' Noble opened her mouth to ask Sarai about it when something caught her eye. 

"Over here!" Noble moved closer as she called to her friend. 

On a natural platform provided by the cavern, a stack of stone tablets was carved with great detail. The ladies quickly realized that the mysterious sorcerer of old had placed them there, carving them in stone to keep them from deteriorating in the humid environment of the dripping cave. 

Noble paused. She thought she felt something move—a presence—but it was gone before she could grasp hold of it.

Was the old priest still watching over his work?

"We will treat them gently," she spoke just in case. When nothing happened, the queen went back to focus on what was in front of her. "This explains a lot..."

Among other things, the sorcerer had meticulously documented exactly what he had done to make the protective barrier. In seven lifetimes Noble would never be able to recreate what he had done, so she skimmed the process with mild interest.

There was also information on the bracelets which were on her wrists. As she suspected, the golden bands had been made by the follower of the Beast God for the King and Queen of Crestfall. Their purpose was not only to protect them and hide their power from curious eyes, but it also enhanced the wearer's powers. 

'So that is what helped Emira have unreasonable ability!'

The former monarch might not have been a saint after all. If this were the case, then she had been able to augment her powers to a Saintlike level with the bracelets. 

Did Byzas know about the jewelry's characteristics? He might have given them to his friend Derik both to hide him and to help him form his core. Brenna's father might have been even more generous than anyone gave him credit for. 

There was also some information about the institution of the confirmation ceremony. Wearing the bracelets was invigorating, but it could also be taxing. It was up to the wearer of the bracelets to bear the burden of leadership both mentally and physically. 

After Cron died from exhaustion, the priest instituted something akin to a doctor's 'check-up' for the rulers. The ruler could either pass on leadership, or with the support of the royal family, could continue to rule. 

From Sarai's research, most rulers who made it fifty years took it as an opportunity to retire, but Emira had not selected that option. 

'Why wouldn't she want a chance to take a rest?' Noble wondered.

Pulling her from her thoughts, Sarai gasped softly. 

"My necklace..." She touched her neck. 

"What about it?" Noble looked up from a tablet at her friend, suddenly concerned. 

"I don't know how to explain it. It....feels weird. Like the power running through it is gone." The redhead frowned. "I also noticed it last time I removed the bracelets but kept on the chain. But this time is it more pronounced, maybe because I left the bands behind completely?"

"You think the necklace feeds off of the bracelet?" Noble wondered at the thought.

If the one who constructed the chain was not skilled enough to make it work on its own, then maybe they had tied it into the magic of the bracelets. The necklace was the only thing keeping Emira from turning anyone who looked at her the wrong way into a crisp. 

Even then its power was not absolute. She still lost her temper and had difficulty reining it in. 

The necklace could only suppress so much, and as Emira's power grew beyond Awakened, the balance of power between her and the necklace had been thrown off. 

Since Emira had no idea that Noble possessed the second set, Emira would naturally assume that losing power would mean losing the bracelets that went with it. 

'But that means…'

Emira was stuck being queen until she died or risked lighting up the whole city with her angry flames!

'I wish she had told me...not that she was exactly the sharing type.' To be fair, Noble hadn't told her about Byzas's bracelets either. 

She touched them now, wondering at how cold they felt. The metal had felt humming with energy before.

Maybe Sarai was wrong and the cavern was suppressing all magical objects. Noble suddenly felt a small sense of dread. 

Whispers of what could happen if her ability was taken flooded her head. 

"Let's hurry up to find all we can and get out of here." Noble tried not to show her angst. 

Sarai's flames flickered. She felt the same. 

They couldn't leave just yet, not until they found out the location of the Heart. 

"Hmm..." Sarai read a tablet a second time. "It says right here that the protective array is fueled by essence. If I flood it with essence, I think I can tap into that power to find an anomaly. That might tell us where the Heart is." 

Noble thought about it for a moment. "We should try it together. You have more of the raw power, but if it works, I might be able to use my special sense." 

The floating Awakened wasn't sure if this was true, but she didn't like the idea of Sarai trying a risky maneuver alone. 

Together the women selected two of the arteries on the wall that were close enough to reach each other if something went wrong. Noble set down the [Lucent Taper] on the ledge and took hold of the stone with both hands.

"Ready?" Noble's eyes swirled. 

On a silent command, they both sent essence into the strange rock, unsure what to expect. The stone took the energy and pulsed with it, glowing red before spreading the crimson light through the discolored rockface. 

A moment later the whole place was glowing from the floor to the ceiling. 

"Was that there before?" Sarai pointed to the center of the room. 

Noble turned to see a glowing pedestal surrounded by a circle of stalagmites. "I'm not sure. But if I were the sorcerer, that is where I would keep a priceless object I didn't want to lose. 

As Noble and Sarai let go of the wall, the red light began to fade ever so slightly. The redhead pursed her lips and circulated her essence.

The light grew brighter. 

Sarai took a deep breath. "That should hold it for a moment." 

Noble looked warily at the strange pedestal. "Let's take a look, but if the Heart is there, remember not to touch it. We will figure something out when we know more." 

"Understood," the beautiful former queen nodded. 

Together, the ladies picked their way across the treacherous terrain to the center of the cavern. 

What they saw was not the Heart of the Lord of the Mountain. 

It was a body.