6. Shards of Amarath

The moon is high in the sky glowing and full. We cross over the Golden Gate Bridge to get access to the secret tunnel having finally made it to our destination.

"James, what about this guardian?"

"According to our legends it's a puzzle we have to solve. I don't know anything beyond that." His brow creases adorably and I lose focus, I shake myself frowning. This relationship has been a comfort but I can't let it distract me. Iris yawns from the back seat. She now has grown so large she fills the seat all by herself.

We reach the other side of the bridge and pull up next to the bridges base and park the car.

"Will it be safe just to leave it here?" I ask

"It should be fine as long as we lock the doors." James replies. Clicking the button to lock the doors, I look around. There is a cave set into the side of the rock face about 20 yard south of us and I point to it and say,

"That seems like the most logical place don't you think?" Heading towards it I say to Iris,

"Stay close to me okay?"

"Yes, Mistress, always." She answers. She is close at my heels as I advance forward into the darkness. My eyes glow and I can see clearly there are two paths ahead one to the right and one to the left.

"Looks like we will have to split up." I say firmly

"I don't like this...." James starts.

"It can't be helped." I pull him into my arms and kiss him hard before pushing him down the left fork and heading down the right. Iris follows me. The path bends and twists but has no more forks thankfully. Eventually we reach a larger chamber and I crouch at the entrance and peer ahead. There is a strange creature laying up ahead sleeping soundly! It has the head of a human but the body of a lion! Deciding that a direct approach may be best I walk up to it and wait. The creature stirs and looks at me and smiles. It has rows of sharp teeth and terrible morning breath.

UGH.

"I seek the Raknath Society Headquarters." I state clearly. It echos through the chamber.

The Sphinx smiles wider and says,

"If Raknath Society you do seek, you must answer my riddles three."

"Ask me your riddles then, and I will answer them." I say with a sense of foreboding should I get the answers wrong.

"I have a mouth but do not speak, I have a bed but do not sleep, I run every were but go nowhere, what am I?" The Sphinx inquires.

"A River?" I ask. The Sphinx smiles and continues,

"What is that which in the morning goes upon four feet

upon two feet in the afternoon,

and in the evening upon three?" James comes up behind me and answers.

"That's easy, Ive heard it before. The answer is Man, for he crawls as an infant, walks as an adult and uses a cane in old age." I jump startled because I didn't hear him come in.

"T-thank you James." I say shakily.

The Sphinx smiles and continues.

"There are two sisters:

One gives birth to the other,

And the other, in turn, gives birth to the first."

I look at James and raise my eyebrows...I think about it long and hard and an answer occurs to me.

"Night and Day?" I ask the sphinx. The Sphinx smiles widest of all.

"Correct. You have answered all three riddles correctly!" It's mouth opens wide and out falls a shard of crystal that is deep purple in color.

"Find the Shard of Amarath you must to reach the hidden Tower's Heart. There are three more each with trials you will have to face." The Sphinx then goes back to sleep it's job having been completed. I pick up the shard and put into my bag. We retrace our steps and go back to the car.

"What now?" I ask James, feeling lost.

"Now I guess we go to the nearest Raknath sanctuary and look for more clues." He says with a sigh. I take out the shard and hold it in my hands. My eyes suddenly glow amethyst and I know where we have to go!

"The next gem is in Washington DC! I just saw it, it's under the Lincoln Memorial!" James stares at me but doesn't question me further. He starts the car and we are on the road again. Iris groans in the back seat. I sense she's tired of being stuck in the car.

"I'm sorry Iris. This trip will be shorter at least." I apologize. Iris grumbles but quiets as the sun begins to rise in the East. We only stop for lunch by stealing some blood from the nearest hospital. Those that see us soon forget. We are like ghosts among men, a figment of the mind.

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It takes us two days to get to Washington DC from the Golden Gate Bridge. We have spent so much time on the road that Iris has been driving us crazy with road trip games like "I spy." I had just guessed that "something green" was a tree, yet again when we finally see the monument coming into view in the distance. It's dark and only security is around which we compel to forget we are there. We circle around to the back of the monument and search for an entrance to the cave system. There is a latch that is almost undetectable by normal human standards on Lincoln's back! Opening this, we take the stairs down,

Down...

Down..

Down.

Til we reach the bottom. At the bottom is a room filled with treasure of all kinds!

"How are we supposed to find the Shard in all this?!?!" I say incredulously.

"Good question." replies James. When all of the sudden a deep rumble comes from behind the piles of gold and gems! A dragon emerges from the piles of gold and it's wearing the shard around it neck!

"Ut oh..." I say

"This could be challenging..." James supplies. I take out my dagger and James pulls out his katana. I places shields around us to protect us from the dragons Fire, right as it breaths fire all around us! I run towards it and slice at its feet! It roars as my blade glances off its scales.

"Fuck." I swear, near shouting over the dragons roars of fury. Changing tactics I run up the dragons tail and onto it's back, as it snaps at me furiously and I dodge its teeth, then stab into the base of its neck wedging my blade between its larger scales. The dragon drops paralyzed and I remove the shard from its neck.

"I'm sorry I had to do this to you O great Dragon, you deserve better." I say with remorse.

"It couldn't be helped." James laid a comforting hand on my shoulder as I jumped down from the dragon's back, landing next to him. Iris appeared especially distressed and I sensed she felt for the dragon as it was close to her kin.

"I'm sorry little one that you had to see this." I reach out and stroke her flank soothingly.

"I'll be okay, Mistress, it's just hard to see him like this." I walk up to the dragon and swiftly run my blade over his throat putting an end to his misery.

"Forgive me." I say solemnly.

We return to the car and I once again hold the shard in my hand and this time I get a flash of a cottage in the swamps of New Orleans. We go hunting for a meal and come back to the car to rest as the sun rises once more.

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