Rising Shards

”I think this is it,” Tik said.

A massive stone statue waited at the coordinates Octa had given Tik, nestled in the middle of a jungle-type environment. The figure depicted by the statue was an armored being wearing a sharp, angular mask.

”It’s one of the interpretations of Endora,” Tik said. ”I suppose I didn’t need to tell either of you that.”

”Nah, but if you gotta think out loud we can handle some repeat info,” Mars said.

”I didn’t even think of Endora, so...” Kara said. ”My theory was Arctus turned himself to stone. Which would solve a lot of our problems, wouldn’t it?”

”Perhaps,” Tik said.

Kara’s expression dropped. ”But we wouldn’t get any info about River, then. So what do we do now?”

”It could be a gate of some kind,” Tik said.

”Want me to smash it?” Kara asked. ”I bet I could knock this whole thing over.”

”If we determine that it’s unopenable otherwise, I will gladly enlist your destructive skills,” Tik said. She peered around the structure, looking for any levers or switches that could open it. There didn’t seem to be anything immediately obvious that could do so, though.

”Could we scan around to see if someone’s in this thing?” Kara suggested.

They tried using the tablet, all they could tell was that there was potentially something under the statue.

”You don’t think Octa led us all this way to just this, do you?” Mars asked. ”A dead end?”

Tik again couldn’t deny the possibility. But even for a liar like her, the quiet tone she took on when she asked if Tik could really stop Arctus...it felt genuine.

”Whatever the case is, there is something here,” Tik said. She tried using her powers to conjure any past event from or around the statue, but her power just came out as dark grey clouds.

”If only it were that easy,” Kara said.

”Kind of makes me lean to this being a dead end,” Mars said.

Kara was about to say something else, but her ears pulled back, and she whirled.

”What? What is it?” Tik asked.

”Someone was watching us!” Kara yelled. She was out of sight immediately, sprinting off into the trees. Mars looked to Tik.

”I’ll be alright here,” Tik said.

”Just holler if not,” Mars said, following after Kara.

Mars didn’t get a look at whoever was spying on them, but he trusted Kara’s senses more than his own. If she so much as heard a blade of grass out of place, she’d let the others know immediately. It took everything he had to run fast enough to get Kara back in view again.

”Wait, stop!” Kara yelled.

The figure she chased was almost faster than her, an absurd concept to Mars. They were an orange blur, and it felt like their target was almost out of sight before Kara leapt, tackling the being to the ground.

It was an armored Exumi, one of the villagers of this place.

”Let me go!” The Exumi yelled. His armor was black and orange, and he had large claws on each hand. Kara held him down easily in spite of the Exumi’s biomechanical body.

”Not until you answer a few questions,” Kara said. ”Let’s start with the easy one, why were you watching us?”

”I’m defending a sacred place!” The Exumi said. ”You were trying to break in! You’re not allowed to...”

”So you ran away? Some protector,” Mars said. ”Tik probably has it open by now.”

The Exumi’s eyes widened. ”N-no, you can’t!”

”Why not?” Kara asked.

”Because...I am under strict orders not to let anyone in!” The Exumi said.

”Again, not doing a great job at that,” Mars said.

Kara got up, scooping the Exumi up and holding him under her arm. ”Here, we’ll help you out. Why don’t you tell Tik why we can’t open it, then?”