Chapter 16 – The Central Device

Dinner, prepared with ingredients foraged from the forest, filled the small table in Arka’s hideout. The soft, blue light reflecting off the cavern walls created a surprisingly warm and inviting atmosphere.

“Noah, look!” Luna said proudly, holding up a plate piled high with colorful berries. “I made this!”

“Wow, Luna, that looks amazing!” I said, scooping up a spoonful. The berries were sweet, with a surprisingly refreshing aftertaste. “Delicious! You’re a better cook than Yuri.”

“Hey!” Yuri protested, playfully shoving my shoulder.

Luna giggled. “Arka taught me!”

“Please, eat your fill,” Arka said, her voice gentle. “Strength is essential for survival in the Abyss.”

We ate, laughter and conversation filling the small chamber, the dangers of the forest momentarily forgotten. Then, a faint tremor ran through the hideout, the water glasses on the table rattling softly.

“Wait…” Yuri said, placing her hand on the floor. “Is that…?”

“Resonance,” I murmured, recognizing the telltale vibration. It seemed to be happening more and more frequently.

The blue light on the walls flickered, the floor and ceiling vibrating gently.

“This one feels… stronger,” Yuri said, her brow furrowing. “Different.”

Luna scrambled under the table, her eyes wide with fear. “No! Shaking! Scary!”

The vibrations intensified, the air growing heavy, the water glasses on the table rattling violently.

“The Resonance events have been increasing in frequency and intensity,” Arka said, her voice calm, but her blue eyes held a hint of concern.

“Increasing?” I asked. “Weren’t they always this strong?”

“No. The Resonance is usually a rare occurrence. Tied to the Abyss’s… cycles. But recently… it’s become more frequent. More intense.”

“Why?” Yuri asked. “What’s causing it?”

“The Resonance originates in the deeper layers,” Arka explained, her gaze fixed on the ceiling. “A disruption in the energy flow. Something… is changing within the Abyss.”

The vibrations pulsed now, a rhythmic beat, like a giant heart, the air itself trembling around us.

“It’s… subsiding,” Yuri said, letting out a shaky breath. “That was… intense.”

“More intense than before,” I agreed, looking at Arka. “Like you said… something’s changing.”

“We must go to the center of this floor,” Arka said, her voice firm. “The source of the Resonance. We must understand what’s happening, if we are to proceed.”

“Go there?” Yuri asked, her voice filled with apprehension. “But isn’t that… dangerous?”

“Danger is… a constant in the Abyss,” Arka said. “But the device at the center… it’s the key to the next floor. Your only way out.”

“Luna go too!” Luna declared, scrambling out from under the table. “Luna help!”

“Very well, Luna.” Arka smiled. “We’ll go together.”

If Arka thought it was necessary, then we had no choice.

The vibrations had ceased, but the forest felt different, the air heavy with an unsettling stillness. As we emerged from the hideout, the usual sounds of the forest – the rustling leaves, the chirping insects, the calls of birds – were gone, replaced by an unnerving silence. Only a faint tremor in the air, a subtle energy emanating from the depths of the forest, hinted at the power that lay dormant within.

“Noah…” Yuri whispered. “It’s… too quiet.”

“The Resonance… it changes things,” Arka explained. “Some creatures become dormant, hiding themselves. Others… are drawn to the source.”

“Bad things… hiding,” Luna said, gripping my hand tightly, her innocent words carrying a chilling weight. “Quiet now.”

As we made our way through the forest, we saw evidence of the Resonance’s effects. Giant insects, usually clinging to rocks and trees, were now motionless, their vibrant colors dulled. Feathered serpents, normally gliding effortlessly through the canopy, were now hidden amongst the branches, their movements stilled. Even the ruby moths had vanished, their shimmering lights extinguished.

“Something’s coming,” Yuri murmured, her hand instinctively going to her knife.

“Don’t worry, Yuri,” Luna said, squeezing her hand. “Luna here!”

“Their behavior is… more pronounced,” Arka said, scanning the forest, her blue eyes glowing faintly.
How does she do that? Some kind of advanced scanning technology? A remnant of her creators?
“We must be cautious. Avoid detection.”

We followed Arka, her silent footsteps leading us through the forest, her movements fluid, precise, as if she knew every twist and turn of the path.
We should have found her sooner. We could have avoided days of wandering aimlessly.

“Left,” Arka said, her voice soft, but clear. “Follow the rocks.”

The path became more treacherous, the trees thicker, the terrain more uneven.

“This is worse than a maze,” Yuri muttered. “Noah, a little help here?” She gestured to a particularly steep incline.

“You can manage,” I teased.

“So helpful,” she muttered, scrambling up the slope.

“The Abyss protects itself,” Arka said. “The closer you get to its secrets, the more difficult the path becomes.”

Finally, after what felt like hours, we emerged from the forest into a large, open clearing. At its center stood a massive device, a strange amalgamation of ancient and futuristic technology, as if it had sprung from the earth itself.

A tall, hexagonal pillar dominated the structure, its surface pulsing with light, the patterns shifting and swirling, a hypnotic dance of spirals and dotted lines.

“That’s…”

“The core of the seventh floor,” Arka finished, her voice calm, almost reverent. She approached the pillar, placing her hand on its surface.

“This device controls the energy flow of the Abyss,” she explained. “It’s the source of the Resonance. If you wish to reach the eighth floor… you must activate it.”

“Just activate it?” I asked. “And that’s it? The path will open?”

“Not so simple, Noah,” Arka said, her voice tinged with warning. “Activating this device… it affects the entire Abyss. The Resonance will amplify exponentially. Every creature on this floor… will feel it.”

“Every creature…?” Yuri echoed, her eyes widening. “That’s… not good.”

“No,” Arka agreed. “It’s not. This device… it’s not just a key to the next floor. It’s… an awakening. It awakens the Abyss itself.”

She removed her hand from the pillar, her blue eyes distant, as if seeing something we couldn’t.

“Others have come here before,” she said quietly. “Explorers, like yourselves. They sought passage to the next floor. They tried to activate the device.”

“And…?”

“They failed.” She paused, her gaze fixed on the pillar. “The records indicate… that the moment they activated it… everything… fell apart.”

She placed her hand on the pillar again, and a holographic image flickered to life above it, a scene from the past, grainy and distorted, the voices of the explorers echoing faintly.

Lost technology. Amazing.

The image showed a group of explorers, their equipment old and worn, gathered around the device, making preparations. The hexagonal pillar, the swirling patterns… it was the same place, but… different.

“The device is ready,” a voice said, the voice of the expedition leader, confident, yet tinged with a hint of nervousness. “Prepare for activation. All personnel, stand clear.”

They manipulated the controls, and the device pulsed with light, the image momentarily whitening out, then returning, the scene now chaotic, the explorers’ voices filled with panic.

“What’s happening?! This isn’t what we expected! Captain, we need to…”

The spiral patterns on the pillar flared, the light spreading outwards, enveloping the forest, the ground shaking, the trees swaying violently.

“Captain! The Resonance… it’s too strong! We can’t…”

A scream cut off the explorer’s words. Massive shapes emerged from the forest, their forms barely visible in the chaotic light, the explorers scattering, their weapons firing uselessly.

The image flickered, distorted, the sound of screams, of roars, filling the air. Then, a single voice, desperate, filled with terror.

“We made a mistake… the Abyss… it’s not… it’s not accepting us… we’re all… going mad…”

The image vanished, the voice cut off mid-sentence. Arka lowered her hand, the hologram disappearing.

We stood there, silent, the horrific scene playing out in our minds.

“They… they all died?” Yuri whispered, her voice shaking.

“Yes,” Arka said softly. “They underestimated the Abyss. The Resonance… it’s not just a key. It’s a trial. And they… they failed.”

“So if we activate it…” Yuri’s voice trailed off, the unspoken question hanging heavy in the air. “…the same thing will happen to us?”

“Perhaps,” Arka said, her blue eyes meeting ours. “But you are not them. You are not unprepared. The choice… is yours.”

The choice.

The spiral pattern on the pillar seemed to writhe and twist, beckoning us forward, towards the unknown, towards… our possible demise.