![]() Then Muran’Kel went on, “And the treasure is here, inside the Nexus Tree.” Esteban, Tao, and Zia leaned closer and saw a glowing blue column at the bottom of the chamber, along with a floating ball in its center. “All right,” she began, pointing to a flashing model of the greenhouse, “We’re here, at the northernmost quadrant.” Then Muran’Kel tapped the central tree tower, and Esteban and the others watched the city fade while the tree itself grew, revealing a strange spherical chamber inside. ![]() Athanaos posed with his golden mask, then made a friendly tease, “But surely someone as all-knowing as you must at least know a thing or two about this city of gold?” Muran’Kel’s icy blue eyes darted left and right, afraid that someone was watching, but when she saw Dorad give a solemn nod, she sighed, raised both hands, and called up a three-dimensional projection of Arcaena and its sunken forest. “I do not know everything, Zia,” she annoyedly huffed. Zia glanced toward Muran’Kel floating nearby, then answered with a smirk, “If anyone would know, she would!” But Muran’Kel’s projection visibly jittered with unease, having not been used to being called out this way before. And I don’t think Father found it - he got in here with his own medallions just a few decades ago.” Dorad abruptly laughed, “And if Zel had touched anything critical, well.we wouldn’t be in here, would we?” “So.where could this treasure be?” asked Esteban. Esteban looked back and forth between the group, then asked, “Does anyone get the feeling something’s.not right? In every city there has to be a-” “Treasure,” Tao interrupted, “I thought of that too, Esteban. “I was worried about you earlier.” “Yes, I’m fine,” Tao replied. “How do you feel?” Athanaos asked, looking Tao over. “Gah!” yelped Zia, “You scared me, Tao!” “Sorry,” the boy admitted. Athanaos had just finished telling Dorad and Muran’Kel a joke about two priests and a god when Tao burst through the door, catching everyone off guard. Outside, Esteban and his friends had tried to lighten the mood after what they’d seen. So, stashing it in his bindle that he found leaning against a planter, Tao hastily ran back up the stairs of this ancient greenhouse. Tao considered opening the case, but quickly decided it better to wait until he was back on his ship. Trying not to disturb the body, he reached in and carefully slid the case free, gasping when he saw his name in Muan etched along its top. Tao leaned closer and saw a book-sized case tucked into a thick pocket. “What can I do, father?” he whispered to the body, “If you wanted me here, and you’re dead.what now? How can I carry on your.legacy?” Suddenly, as if Zel heard him, something glinted in the folds of his dark robe. Something felt incomplete about all this, and Tao decided to speak his thoughts. It took him a great deal to stand, and more so to get used to the body of his long-deceased father Zel. Isle of Secrets: Chapter 25Several minutes had passed when Tao stopped crying.
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