All around them was a black veil that covered the space. Kairo got back to his feet massaging his arm. Above them he could see a sort of fracture as if the sky had been divided and they fell within. Faint light emanated from the hole so far in the sky it appeared smaller than it was.
"We must have fallen really deep. This will be problematic," Kairo mused. He stretched his arms around him just to make sure he got an idea of what was here. Few meters away from him, Kairo heard a faint voice getting closer. It was like the voice spread out in waves leaving repeated words in between.
Kairo couldn't tell but he was pretty sure he recognized one of those voices. That of his partner Nyx who had fallen just to his south. "I have no card that can produce enough light in this place. How will we move in here?" Kairo's mind spun.
The expedition might have slowed down for them but the others above must have continued. Knowing how important chosen destiny was for the card mage police, Kairo was pretty certain they would not wait for him nor any person that fell in here.
From his belt pocket, Kairo picked up their special alert gun and fired a yellow bullet in the sky. This was the signal for in trouble but not in danger. The rocket flew high into the sky, spinning in a circle as it ascended the abyss.
As it rose, Kairo had the chance to notice who was around him. There were exactly four of them who had fallen in the abyss and survived. On his south, Nyx stood up and dragged her bleeding forehead in his direction.
On his right side was Selis dusting her now battered dress. None of her people could be seen here. She was the only one to fall into the abyss from her group.
On Kairo's north was a familiar figure. A pack of cards in hands, he smiled at them with a harmless yet predatory gaze. The Collector was also part of the game.
"The Ghost Lord and Ghost Prison would not be invincible now that I have the Protector of the Ember Sky," Kairo analyzed in his mind. Although the chances were far from even, he was more confident about facing this old foe.
"If we stay in the dark, this expedition will get more complex for us. Your light wouldn't last long enough for us to move. I have something better," the Collector said.
Kairo and Nyx stood side by side, worry edged on their faces. They were in the middle of an abyss with the two leaders of the opposing factions. Kairo knew how much havoc anyone could cause for the card chosen destiny; what would they do to him and Nyx to obtain the Eye of Truth in this secluded place? He was clear he had to formulate a plan and fast before they showed their claws.
"Be quick about it. They have quickened their pace above. My people have clear orders to continue no matter what was to happen to any one of us. We are a family; one falls and the other takes the reins," Selis said, a calm smile in the direction of the fracture above their head.
"It's hard to figure out if she takes the competition seriously or is just making fun of us," Kairo frowned.
"Kairo, there is water around here. It looks like the place is connected to the water body we met before our arrival," Nyx said by his side, crouching to their knee level. She stuck her palms into the cold water testing how deep it was. "Someone can definitely swim inside," she said.
"You mean he is here," Selis finished, her eagle eyes scanning all the shadowy angles of the abyss. Although she couldn't see anything, she acted purely on instinct feeling everything around her. This was the acuteness developed over years of running and escaping the card mage police's nets.
The Collector waved a card in between his fingers, activating the circuitry of the void. In the pitch black area, its appearance shone like bright veins in the sky. The particles of energy around him all moved as if shaped by his will into a lantern that floated in front of him.
The lantern cast a warm glow around him spreading a meter away. It couldn't illuminate all the abyss but was enough for them to see on what they were setting their feet.
"Stay close to me," Kairo said to Nyx. She nodded and followed from the side. Although he had noticed the wounds on her body, he didn't ask about anything. He knew the mission was risky and getting worried at this early stage would be counterproductive for them.
With the Collector leading the way with his lantern, Kairo and the others followed silently from behind.
The only sound that could be heard around was the echoes of their steps as they rhythmically tapped on the callous ground. As they moved, Kairo soon noticed that walls carved into a strange stone appeared on rocks seeding their way.
Each of those rocks had a symbol, a symbol he felt was eerily familiar.
"Looks like the circuitry of the void but carved into stones," he said in a low voice.
"Not exactly the circuitry of the void but a pale copy of what it should be," the Collector quickly refuted at the forefront. Speaking like an expert, he continued, "I have seen card activations of all types, from the most bizarre to the most impressive cards activation that seed the card magic. But never have I seen something so incomplete."
Kairo and Nyx exchanged looks and kept up the pace. Although they didn't like the Collector, part of what he said was true. The circuitry was considered nothing more than an extension of the card magic, where without circuit there was no card activation and hence no card magic. The symbols on the rocks were far from the complexity of the real one but eerily close, like it was part of its shadow.
"It's normal for you not to understand card fossil language, as it's something artificial created out of the mind of someone just like the cards you all hold," a voice replied to the group.
Kairo's muscles tensed up. Already stressed because of Selis and the Collector, now there was this voice he couldn't see coming out of nowhere. "Is it another fossil?" Kairo was puzzled.
"Don't worry, Kairo. We've got this," Nyx reminded him on the side. Amidst the flickering light provided by the lantern, Kairo noticed that she held something more on her lips as if those words were not destined to him but herself.
"Did something happen in the fog?" Kairo wanted to ask. But the card fossil's voice kept them all on high alert. He didn't have time to ponder on anything else for the moment.
"Show yourself. You call us inferior beings but are too scared to appear in front of me," Selis said, her voice a tad more sarcastic. For her, these fossils were little toys she could get rid of. The real challenge awaited further, said by her deep gaze into the mountain top direction.
"Mortals always have this disturbing tendency of hating what they don't understand and fearing what they can't control. Ten thousand years after our creation and you haven't all changed," the voice continued.
This time around ahead of the group, the Collector had stopped moving, forcing Kairo and the others to spread slightly outward to get a better look at what was ahead.
Seated on one of the strange rocks was a humanoid figure. Resembling a strange mixture of a fish and human, it had pointed ears and rugged skin giving the feeling of dragon scales. Unlike the first fossil they met above, this one had an aura of detachment around it, giving Kairo the impression that it wasn't here to attack them.
"His own cards are stuck in between his fingers and palms just like a fish," the Collector said, a hint of amusement in his voice. Upon closer look, one could see that the fish-like figure had three fingers, all separated by glands the exact size of a card.
Two on one palm and a single one on the other. He had three cards, exactly like the card mages.
"This one feels way more dangerous," Kairo said inwardly. This was only the second fossil they met, but this one gave him a completely different feeling, something he found hard to put into words.
"If you're here, it simply means from the ocean to the forest, the galleries in here are connected. It will be safe to assume this gallery can also lead directly to the mountain top. Otherwise you wouldn't be seated here," Selis said. Her cards already in hand. She appeared ready to brute force her way to the top.
"I am here to talk, not to fight… if you want to know more about card fossils, follow me." The humanoid figure stood up and led the way.
The Collector stepped out, followed by Selis, walking after the unknown figure with no heed of fear for the potential trap it could be.
"She doesn't show it but her arrogance is unmatched. Or might be she simply feels too loaded," Kairo thought. Then checked on his partner to the side before following, joining the group.