The Sunspire Where You Belong

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Hunger did have its limits. Once the dust settled and Tryphon's eyes adjusted to the slanting light he could look around a bit. He saw the twisting head of the dead goat and squinted his eyes, turning away within moments. A wave rolled through the pit of his gut; had he eaten earlier, surely the sensitive boy would've added to the depravity within the pit.

Along one side of the irregular depression was a pile of waylayed bones. These looked as if they'd been picked clean, but they hadn't been bleached by the sun to any extent. Tryphon idly mused to himself about what could've done this; he was no geologist though, and had no way of knowing that the earth had simply given way due to the weather. Similarly he did not know that the billy had been chased across the mountainside by something far more malevolent than a mere wolf — and perhaps that creature lurked just out of sight.

When a shadow passed through the beams of light from above, Tryphon jerked his head around and squared his shoulders to it. The motion was fast and instinctually defensive; it also served to quirk his already stiff muscles. No doubt he would have some bruises blooming across his skin in the coming hours. The voice that drifted down to him was not familiar, but it was somewhat friendly (or he chose to believe as much). It was feminine at the very least, and maybe Tryphon was just sexist enough to think that meant something.

H-hello? He replied, and his voice ricocheted off the loose soil walls. With some careful stepping he reversed himself and craned his sore neck, looking for the stranger — I'm down here. Can you see me? Except he should've known the answer to that. She was blocking the light, some kind of dark figment looming just off to one side. It was only after he sucked in a breath to speak that Tryphon realized how awful the pit smelled, which made his belly do flip-flops all over again.


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