AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Let’s have a closer look,” I said. “But don’t touch anything. These plants don’t look familiar to me at all, and we don’t know if they could be poisonous.”
Slowly, our team made its way into the garden, keeping a safe distance from the plants. As we ventured deeper into the greenery, it became clear that this was not just a random assortment of plants. Paths ran through the garden, carved from the rock and smoothed, edged with narrow bricks of the same substance. Huge beds of plants and trees ran alongside. They’d clearly been planted and cultivated once, even though they were rather overgrown now. Giant ferns reached out like clawed hands from the dark corners, their fronds glowing with an eerie luminescence that bathed the garden in a twilight glow. Trees towered above our heads with smooth dark trunks and long flowing white leaves, like some twisted version of a weeping willow. A profusion of flowering vines cascaded down the salt rock walls, vibrant with white flowers that seemed to glow on their own.
Carlisle walked up to one of the plants, leaning forward to study some iridescent leaves that also seemed to be emitting some kind of glow.
"It's probably some kind of bio-luminescent compound," he speculated.
"The plants must produce it to survive without sunlight."
"And the water?" Theo asked.
“I can hear water,” I said.
We moved around a grove of smaller trees and found the water source… and the temple. For the third time that day, we stopped, taking in the view, craning our necks as we looked up at the huge structure before us. Taller than any other building here, it took up a large portion of the wall, rising to the height of the cavern itself. Golden fires burned at intervals, throwing the carvings into relief, but closer to the ground they shone with colour, reflecting the various coloured lights that were coming from the plants in the garden at its foot. It was carved from the same salt rock as the rest of the city, ornately decorated with depictions of angels that had been worn smooth over time but still held their majestic aura. A massive archway served as its entrance, darkness within hiding what lay inside.
An almost palpable energy seemed to radiate from it, and I shivered. "It's... incredible," breathed Sariel, and I looked at her, loving the way her eyes shone as she stared at the scene before us.
“It is impressive,” murmured Ash, with more emotion that I’d ever heard come from him before. He went to step forward, but I reached out and grabbed his arm. He turned on me, fury in his eyes, and I blinked, taken aback by the sudden show of aggression.
“Watch yourself,” I said, gesturing to the smooth stone floor he had been about to step on.
Ash turned, anger fading quickly as he saw what I’d spotted a moment ago. In front of the temple, a pool of water shimmered in the luminescent glow from the plants that edged it. Lilies floated on its surface, their petals an ice blue instead of thenormal white or pink. Water trickled down from above, falling in a delicate waterfall from an opening higher up in the cavern ceiling. In the centre of the pool lay a small platform, on which stood another clay statue. From the bottom of the pool, dozens of tiny carved channels carried water from the pool out into the garden, an intricate irrigation system. But it wasn’t any of those things that had caused me to grab Ash. It was the huge Solomon’s circle that surrounded the pool itself, carved into the rock, the symbols as familiar to me as the alphabet.
“Fuck,” muttered Ash.
“Yeah. Might not be active, but we don’t want to take the chance,” I said, releasing his arm.
“How are we going to get out the door then?” asked Ash. “Can you disarm it?”
“Possibly…” I said, reaching out with my mind to find the power controlling the circle.
“You don’t need to,” said Sariel. “The circle only surrounds the pool; it doesn’t reach the door. You and Ash can just walk around it.”
I frowned. “Why protect the pool and not the temple?”
“Because the pool sustains the garden?” suggested Carlisle. “I’d bet that water is fresh and not salt water.”
“Hmm,” I mused. “Right, we’ll head around to the temple. I want everyone avoiding the circle, just in case.”
Skirting the edge of the circle, I led the way to the shadowed opening of the temple. I flicked on my torch, shining it into the opening. Steps led up to a large solid wooden door, but the effect of time and salt water had left it rotten and brittle, and I didn’t think it would take much to force it open.
I glanced back at the others, then turned and gave the door a shove. It crumbled under my hands, and I fell forward into the darkness that lay beyond.
Chapter Twenty-Five
THEO
“Well, I knew you were keen on me, Alastor, but I hadn’t realised it had got to the point where you’re literally falling at my feet.” I grinned down at my boss as I stepped over the remains of the ancient door into the dark hallway beyond.
Alastor glared at me as he got to his feet, but I knew he didn’t mean it. He loved me really.
"Come on, Alastor, you're practically vibrating with excitement," I teased as we stood shining our torches down the dark hallway. No doors on either side as far as we could see. Just one hallway. Pretty much a tunnel really. Another one.Fabulous. I was really craving the wind and the feel of grass under my paws, and the weird turquoise stuff out there did not count. My wolf did not like that garden at all, it was downright freaky.
Alastor shot me a glare as he got to his feet. “Shall we go in? Or would you prefer to stand here taking the piss?”
“Honestly?” I asked, just to see the flicker of irritation on his face. Ooh, red eyes, not good. I took a dramatic bow and gestured ahead. "After you, oh great and sombre one."
With an exaggerated sigh, he brushed past me.
