It came to N'jobu's realization that he had had the most rotten of luck these days; having come uncomfortably close to near-death experiences one time too many.
Why did he have to fall face to face with these strange, cloaked men first thing after barely coming to from nearly drowning?
"There's nowhere to run!" one of his pursuers yelled.
No, but really… why was all this happening to him all of a sudden?
"Damn it all."
N'jobu took a sharp turn to the left, feet pounding, lungs burning… before skidding to a stop as a cavernous expanse stretched before him. His eyes widened at the sight of the granite spire that loomed overhead—an immense column rooted upside down, like some impossible growth. That specific area had been smoothed out, the ground evened and devoid of any rock formations, and what looked like some sort of ritualistic circle sprawled on its surface. Lines of glowing glyphs and symbols intertwined across its surface, intricate yet indistinct from where he stood, reminiscent of the spell matrices and arrays Vyswe'eyaga wove when wielding her sorcery. Two structures stood on either side of the circle; they were tall, slim monuments. And between them, above the circle and the spire's tip, hung a void… a dark abyss. N'jobu couldn't describe it in any other way—it was like the very fabric of space had been torn apart.
He was struck breathless, though already gasping for air, as a shiver coursed down his spine and goosebumps rose across his skin. This place… It gripped him with a primal fear that deepened the longer he stared at the inverted tower and the strange circle beneath it—something was profoundly, irredeemably wrong here.
N'jobu was about to turn around but hesitated at the sound of rushing steps inside the dark tunnel, and they were getting closer. He cursed under his breath—he shouldn't have let himself get distracted. It was then that he caught the faint sound of someone calling out to him. He scanned around him until he spotted the outline of an individual wedged between tall rocks, signalling to him. He squinted—
"Ewa?"
She beckoned him several times, but he foolishly stayed rooted in place and stared in shock. Then she disappeared when he blinked, only to find her before him. He didn't get to say a word before she threw him over her shoulder, and the next moment they were both hidden behind the ragged rocks.
"The hell were you doing? Standing there like an idiot!" She hissed in a low voice.
"E-Ewa…" N'jobu couldn't find the words, he was both happy and relieved to be with someone familiar. Ewa paused, watching N'jobu with an uncertain look.
"What's going on with you?"
Her aghast stare suddenly made him very self-conscious; it took him a moment before he gathered himself before speaking again. "Did you not see—"
Ewa shut her hand to his mouth so fast that he almost fell back; his lower face stung as she lifted a finger to her lips in a silencing gesture, then pointed upward. He followed the movement—to the roof of the cave—and frowned.
There was nothing there.
But then N'jobu thought he saw it—something shifting in the dark. He narrowed his eyes, and as they adjusted, the faintest stirrings revealed themselves. No… not within the shadows. The shadows themselves were alive, writhing and twisting. The longer he stared, the clearer it became—there was something deeper, blacker than the dark itself. Its outline was… it looked like hands, unnaturally long, emaciated hands… dozens of them. But he couldn't see what the main body looked like. And on second thought… did not even want to imagine what it looked like.
N'jobu lowered his head, his blood running cold as he stared at Ewa—a clear question in his eyes.
"That junju hasn't moved ever since I first entered this place, so I am assuming it must be sleeping," she whispered, slowly removing her hand off his face. "You now understand why it would be best if it were not to wake up, don't you?"
N'jobu nodded grimly. Then something else caught his attention; it was three figures which emerged from the cave's mouth, whipping their heads around, searching. N'jobu quickly recognised them as his pursuers from earlier.
"Follow me," Ewa whispered in his ear. He turned around and followed higher between the rocks, deeper into the shadows. But contrary to his expectations, the cloaked-men did not even try to scavenge the zone—they headed straight below the building.
N'jobu leaned forward, curious on how they were going to enter the, and his eyes widened when they simply levitated into the air and entered through a large window. He looked back at Ewa, but the woman simply shrugged.
"We should draw upon this opportunity to observe that diagram more closely," N'jobu whispered over his shoulder.
"Out of the question."
"Come on." N'jobu was already moving to slip past their hiding spot, but he hardly made a step that his movements were halted by a firm hand on his arm.
"I said; No."
N'jobu frowned, and with her grip on him there was nothing he could do. "But we can't just wait around for things to happen. And are you not curious about what there are doing over there?"
"No," she repeated. "We are going to sit tight and stay undiscovered until further notice."
"You can't be serious?!"
"—shh!"
They both soon fell silent when several more figures descended from the inverted tower, N'jobu counted eight in total. He soon came to the realization that the previous group went to get some help. It was obvious, considering the size of this cave, that it would be a lot easier to search for an intruder with more people, and safer too.
"Shit." They couldn't stay here any longer; they had to flee!
He turned to Ewa, to find her frozen in abject terror, and quickly found himself experiencing the same when turned his gaze to where she was watching.
Just as the group of cloaked men touched the ground, something else emerged from the inverted tower. It was a fusion of creatures conjoined into a single, monstrous form. Its body was that of a grae—broad and imposing—while from its back unfurled powerful feathered wings, streaked with hues of blue, red, and brown, beating as it descended. Then there was its head; unmistakably human, framed by a thick beard and crowned with a towering headdress of pearls and jewels.
N'jobu's blood ran cold when its yellow, slitted eyes locked onto his. Not in his direction, at him, even as he was concealed deep in the shadows, hidden behind the tall stalagmite on the opposite side of it. It still somehow managed spot him. The creature's lipless mouth stretched into a chilling smile, and in that instant he knew—it could not be a mere junju. No, this was something far beyond that. In its gaze burned a sharp, deliberate intelligence, utterly unlike the frenzied madness and savage instinct of ordinary junjus. Even the more cunning ones among them had never shown this depth of self-awareness. This thing, N'jobu felt it, could think, make choices, and rational decisions.
"My oh my…" It spoke in a voice at odds with its monstrous form. One might have expected nothing else but a thunderous roar from such a terrifying creature, which was why N'jobu faltered in disbelief when instead it spoke with a mild, silken tone, the kind of voice one might hear from a young woman. The dissonance was jarring; that gentle sound issuing from the face of a middle-aged man grafted onto the body of a beast. N'jobu and Ewa stood frozen, helpless, as it alighted above them, its hooved legs clicking against the stone. With an air of curious amusement, it regarded them and purred, "What do we have here?"