Bel had assumed the path would lead to the wall, like where they had entered the room. She had thought it was reasonable to expect the enormous cavern to mirror itself.
Instead, the path ended in a semi-circle of large stones.
The tallest was at least three times Heln's height and jutting from the ground in a way that suggested each one sank deep into the earth. At the base they were mossy, a virulent green against chalky white. Higher up the stone was clean and riddled with carved runes. The stone in the center had the skull on it, more detailed than the one in the tunnels. Every bump and flaw of bone stood out, the socket so deep that Bel wondered if she looked through it if she would see to the other side. The plant life around them glowed a soft, soothing green.
"They look like the Rising Stones." Rhyss touched the outermost one, it was the shortest and was still quite a bit taller than she was.
"They'd be in roughly the same spot, too." Heln was staring at the carving in the center. "Maybe they were used similarly, when runic magic was… well, when it worked."
"Can you feel anything?" Rhyss asked him.
Heln gave her a sheepish look. "I, um. Never took my shields down. After the room."
"What?" Rhyss looked surprised, then faintly murderous. "We could be walking straight into something and we wouldn't even know!"
Bel stepped in before she went back to being an only child, placing a hand on Heln's shoulder. "Heln is not a tool. He's a person. We all want to get out of here alive, Rhyss, but you can't forget that we're all just people."
"Thank you, Bel." Heln looked confused, but sounded genuinely grateful, so Bel would take it.
"I am aware." Rhyss sounded like she wanted to say something quite a bit stronger than that. "However, maybe when we make finds like this we should take the time to investigate them, especially since I recall someone was curious about these ruins…?"
"You're right. About both things, I should have checked sooner." Heln shrugged off Bel's hand and closed his eyes, clearly lowering his shields and feeling out around him once more. "Well, they feel like the Rising Stones, but they're muted. It's like they're asleep. If it helps, they don't seem to be dangerous, and I don't think they're going to rise any time soon."
"Pity, we could have ridden them up." Bel sat down. Right here seemed like a good enough place to take a break if Heln said it was safe.
"That would have killed us." Rhyss folded her arms, responding to Bel's spoken words.
"Oh, well, at least then my legs would stop hurting." Bel drummed her heels on the ground, trying to get any feeling that wasn't pain in the soles of her feet. She didn't think she was going to succeed. "I dare one of you to stick your hand in that hole."
"No." Heln sat down next to her.
Rhyss looked like she was going to argue, but she sighed and set her bag down. "Fine. A quick rest, then we need to get to the wall. Today."
"But don't you remember? Time has no meaning when we're underground." Bel gave up and flopped onto her back, staring up at the cavern ceiling. It was dim here, only a few crystals shining through the gloom. "It's way darker here, have you noticed that? I thought it was because my eyes were used to the mega crystal."
"No, you're right. There's less magic here." Heln said. "Even the trees are quieter. Before, it kind of felt like if we just stopped and listened…" He shook his head instead of finishing the sentence. "I wonder what's different."
"The stones, maybe. I thought you weren't special friends with the trees?"
"What?" Heln blinked. "Oh. No, never actually stopped and listened, so I guess we don't have that special bond."
"Shame."
Bel propped herself up on her elbows and looked at the likeness of the Forest God. It was very well carved, but it was just that — a carving. She'd felt more threatened by the pillars. Maybe it was the lighting, but she thought it was just where they were.
Even though she knew that the tree castle was infested with things that she didn't want to think about, the cavern had an aura of peace that was particularly palpable next to the stones. She closed her eyes and let that feeling soak into her, feeling calm for the first time in what felt like centuries.
"Well, we rested and now we need to get to the wall." Rhyss's voice made Bel's shoulders want to tense up again.
She kept her eyes closed, anyway. "Excuse you. I am having a moment and you are shattering it."
"Crack crack."
"Wow, Rhyss, you do have a sense of humor." She finally opened her eyes and was surprised to see Rhyss's hand nearly in her face. Black residue was trapped underneath every single fingernail and she didn't want to know what it was from. "What's this?"
"My hand." Rhyss shook it a bit.
"I see that. Why's it right up in my face? Are you going to punch me?"
"I'm offering you a hand up, dumb dumb, but I could—"
Bel grabbed her hand before she could finish that sentence. She grinned a bit and hauled her to her feet. It felt like this really was the first time that Rhyss was warming up to her, and Bel was surprised by how much she liked it. She definitely wanted to encourage rather than discourage it.
"Wow, you are strong," Bel told her. "I am so impressed. There are probably literally stars in my eyes."
She faltered when Rhyss actually leaned in close and looked her in the eye for a moment. "No, there aren't. Let's go."
Ah, damn. She'd somehow managed to screw it up. Again.
Chapter Twelve
Bel poured more magic into the bubble floating above her hand. It wasn't dark, exactly; nothing had really changed. The moss was still glowing, tree trunks looked like gently stirred embers,
