The Gateway

April 25th, 2012-Today I spent another day walking towards the supposed directions of the ruins. I can feel that I am getting closer to something, part of the instincts that have been honed in my time as an adventurer. I should find it within the next day if I am lucky and can make good headway.

Tonight, I got lucky and managed to find a cave to take shelter in before the rain started. If I can give the Amazon one thing, it certainly deserves its title as a rainforest; it's rained almost every night I've been here, and this night is no different. The cave I'm in is fairly non-descript, and the only interesting thing is that I found it in the Amazon right before it rained again. It's about fourteen feet into the cliff face  and eight feet wide, with the ceiling a good seven feet up, just tall enough for me to stand up fully without banging my head on the top. I set my supplies over on the far side of the cave, my fire crackling merrily on the other side of my shelter. I managed to find a large stone big enough to sit on over and pulled it over to the side of the fire, so at least I have a place it sit. The fire's light still manages to create an eerie effect when it's comforting light gives in to the shadows, but I don't think I'm ever going to really get over that.

I should be getting to sleep soon, I'll need my rest if I want to make it to the ruins tomorrow, and call me paranoid, but I feel as if I will need the energy I can muster for the journey ahead. Perhaps this journey is getting to me, but it's never hurt anyone to be careful. If there is one thing I've learned archeology, it's that the careless ones are some of the skeletons you find littering the many catacombs.

I'll resume my journey tomorrow, and call me crazy, but I fear that there is something in the ruins much more dangerous than I if any of the tales the locals tell are true. Wish me luck.

I awoke to the rays of sunlight dancing around the canopy of leaves and into my eyes. Groggily, I managed to sit up and rub the sleep from my eyes. Outside, I could see that the sun was still early on its course across the sky, and from the position it was in, I'd say it is still around 7 am; plenty of time to get ready and make my way to the ruins before nightfall, if I managed to make good time there.

I stood up fully and stretched out my joints, and made my way over to the other side of the cave where my supplies currently laid. After rummaging around in the backpack for a bit, I managed to find some strips of bacon and a pan big enough to cook them on.

After replacing the firewood, relighting the fire, and putting the bacon on to cook, I went out to check the area outside of the cave. As expected, most of the foliage was covered in a light layer of water, provided by the rain last night. The water that caught the light seemed to faintly shine with a light of its own, as if the tiniest fraction of the light was captured in those tiny pockets of water.

Checking the area for recent activity showed that the only signs of anything being here was the tracks I made on my original trek here.

Returning to the fire, I waited for the bacon to fully cook. After awhile, I was having a plate full of bacon and some water from the canteen I brought along. Not the most glorious of breakfasts, mind you, but enough to give me energy till the next night.

Then of course, before I got to set out I had to do the tedious tasks of packing everything up. Now, it's not that the task is exceedingly difficult; put away the pans, pick up your sleeping arrangements, store the extra firewood, pick up your backpack and set out. I had done it a thousand times at least. The problem lay in the fact that I had done it at least a thousand times, and it lost its meaning after about the hundredth time doing so. It's certainly a far cry from the vast differences my journeys take me on, and while it is boring, it certainly isn't much to complain about. Annoying, but not worth spending more time than necessary thinking about it, even though doing it will often bring me back to this strain of thought.

After checking to make sure I didn't forget anything vital to my journey, I set out. I made sure to get my bearings first though, it would not be good to get lost out here.

The walk wasn't anything out of the ordinary in my time as an adventurer in jungles. Push away the foliage, stay away from the poisonous creatures that inhabited the area, and be cautious. While I want to make good time, it is never a good idea to rush through without checking things first. I remember my first adventure, I was so excited to be off, I almost rushed right over the side of a small cave's overhang to the ground a couple feet below. Not anything that would kill me, but it certainly made me think of what would happen if I rushed into say, a fifty foot drop.

Anyway, I need to stop getting lost in my thoughts. It's funny really, it has always been a habit of mine, to get lost in a discussion or such, and then I realize that I just went on a rant or long strain of thought for a minute or two.

The time continued like this for much of the day. Move forward, be sure to keep my bearings so I  don't get lost, and try not to let my thoughts distract me to the point I would lose concentration on the imaginary path ahead. I managed to do the first two goals fine, but my thoughts always seem to  wander when going on long treks. It passes the time for me and relieves my boredom, but it is certainly not a good habit in dangerous situations.

After a couple hours of walking, the sun could be seen almost directly overhead, signaling it would be noon soon. I decided to catch a break; my legs were tired and finding the ruins would do me no good if I was too exhausted to explore them properly.

While I rested, I made sure to keep alert. I would rather not end up a meal for some predator that caught me off guard.

By the time the sun reached overhead, I had already started to set off again. After finding my bearings for what seemed like the tenth time this day, I set off northwest, intent on reaching the ruins the locals had mentioned. While they said that the ruins had nothing of value or importance, it always was different for me. It was entirely possible they just didn't know something valuable when they saw it, or they just couldn't find anything because lack of proper training.

After a lot more walking and a couple more breaks, the sky was beginning to darken. After a bit more walking, it was fully night. The crescent moon emitted a faint light over the landscape, which coated the trees in liquid silver, while the stars lit up the night sky in a breathtaking display of beauty. I was always awed by the beauty of nature. While grand and ornate buildings can be amazing to see, it always came off to me as if it was trying to hard to be awe inspiring, instead of the effortless beauty of nature.

With the light almost faded to nothingness, I could see that something was off with my surroundings as I stepped around a tree that was blocking my view previously. In the distance, you could clearly see an orange light, as if created by fire, at the base of a mountain. It seemed to be coming out of an opening at the bottom, but it was clearly not a cave. It seemed to be coming out of a tunnel of sorts, and even more strange than that, there were what seemed to be stones on the side of the path, three to a side, that had a small hole at their tops which also emitted the same light. This is clearly not the ruins the locals mentioned, but if not them, then what. It is not like something like this would go unnoticed, the lights could probably be seen from at least a mile away. The only reason I hadn't seen it sooner was that my view was constantly blocked by plant life, but a helicopter or plane would have no such problem.

My curiosity spiked, I decide that I will get there as soon as I can, if only to see what the source of that light is. It is certainly not fire, but what other substance could emit an orange light like that?

Alas, my journey to the mysterious tunnel began. The walk there was surprisingly uneventful considering the destination. Within the hour I was standing right at the mouth of the tunnel, and I could finally get a better look at it.

The tunnel seemed to be fifteen feet tall and seven feet wide in an oval shape. At the top of the tunnel where three sets of semi-circle rings, and each ring was inscribed with glowing sky-blue symbols, the likes of which I have never seen before. The orange light that had previously alluded me to this tunnel's presence didn't seem to come from any particular source; no torches could be seen, or clusters of glowing insects either. The orange light seemed to just be, for all sense that it makes, seemingly coming out of everywhere and no where at once. What I thought was holes in the stones along the path was just the mysterious orange light, and not it's source as I inferred. While the stones made more sense, as at least there was a definite place the light was, it still fails my understanding of light. I am no scientist, mind you, but this is probably breaking at least one known and tested fact of the world.

While this light certainly is strange, even stranger is what I am feeling from this place. What I once thought to be my instincts for the ruins I was going to originally turns out to be my feelings for this place, as they have intensified to the point that there is no other explanation.

While there is probably a truth behind the saying curiosity killed the cat, if I find out the secrets of this place it could revolutionize both the sciences and the field of archeology. Before I set out, just to be on the safe side, I carved a message into the surrounding area, and if the worst should happen to me, anyone following should know to leave this place be.

Walking down the light brown path with standard rock walls, there doesn't seem to be any indication that this place has been affected by time, even though it is quite obviously deserted of any earthly life; there is nary a single cobweb or bit of dust to be found.

Curiously, although much less curious than the lack of cobwebs and other such things, it doesn't seem to be sloping down that much. I had expected a steep climb down, but the path is little more than a tiny decline, barely even enough to be considered a minor hazard, as any less and it couldn't possibly affect my walking in the slightest.

As if fate itself heard my thoughts, the path started to slope downward more and more with each consecutive step. Before it could get to the point of being majorly dangerous, the path abruptly flattened out. At the end of the short path, another room could easily be made out, with a raised pedestal in the middle, although whatever was at the top was still concealed from view. After making sure that there wasn't any immediate traps waiting to kill any unfortunate adventurers, I started off the to next room. Stepping through the doorway, I think I finally found what this place was hiding.

Upon a raised platform made out of a tiered circular step setup, an orb sat upon an intricately carved stone pillar, barely four and a half feet high. The orb was a deep, fiery crimson, and inside what looked like flames danced around, creating what looked like an orb made of pure fire. Not only that, but it must have been the source of this orange light, as the light intensified the closer to the orb it was. The orb was about four inches in diameter, and it looked flawlessly smooth.

The room I was in was circular, and looked as if it was built solely for the purpose of holding this orb. It was about sixteen feet in diameter, with each subsequent tier of the raised platform it housed exactly four feet from the previous one to the next ones beginning. Think a wedding cake, if each tier was a massive four feet across from the next tiers outside circle.

Confused, I looked about. There wasn't a single trap in site. Not a single tripwire, pressure plate, or other means of setting off a trap could be seen. Who would leave something like this unguarded, and how was I the first to find it?

Cautiously, I approached the orb. I was careful not to make any sound, in the chance that they managed to rig a trap to that instead of more mundane means. By the time I reached the top, not a single indicator that a trap was sprung or even existed was found. Could this place really be unguarded and I was just lucky enough to find it? What about my instincts, they are still as strong as when they entered, if not stronger.

Carefully, as to not disturb anything, I quickly snatched the orb, ready to place down a place holder, when I realized that there wasn't even a trap that's sprung when you pick up the orb. Why would anyone leave something like this without a single trap guarding it?

Still baffled, I turned around, and then I saw something that shouldn't have been possible. Blocking the entrance to this room and the only exit, a wall of flame stood. Of course the trap would be tied to the orb, and not the environment. Did I really see an orb of unknown power and I didn't think to check if it does anything more than look pretty.

Suddenly, a wall of flame is conjured around the outer wall. The flames start to spin faster and faster, until all I can see of the stone wall previously there is a speeding vortex of intense flames. Without warning, four chains of flames shoot out for my limbs, but instead of burning me, they wrap around my arms and legs, pulling me into the air. No matter how hard I struggle, the flames, if they can even be called that, won't release me. Slowly, almost tauntingly, a fifth chain of flame, this time a swirling mass of red, yellow, and orange, creeps out of the vortex. Deliberately, it goes for my face, and like the others, it does not burn me. Instead, it lifts my chin partly into the air, and for some reason, I can barely stay awake anymore. My eyelids are impossible to open. The final words I make out is a faint, almost ethereal like whisper. "You will be reborn," It says, but I never get a chance to think what it means, for in the next second, darkness claims me, and all is black