Chapter 6 – A Second Artifact

We finished our meager meal and snatched a few hours of sleep. Or at least, I tried to. Yuri, nestled close beside me for warmth, kept poking me with her hair.
So much for rest.

The Abyss, however, had other plans. A low hum resonated through the floating island, followed by a familiar, unsettling shift in gravity.

“Yuri, time to move,” I said, nudging her awake. “We need to find a larger landmass.”

She nodded, rubbing the sleep from her eyes, and quickly packed our meager belongings.

Onwards, then.

We set off, carefully navigating the distorted gravity, our steps synchronized, our bodies working in tandem. In the distance, a large landmass loomed, dwarfing the small island we’d just left. A long, narrow bridge stretched precariously across the void, connecting the two.

We traversed the bridge, the strange, fluctuating gravity testing our balance with every step. Finally, we reached the other side.

The moment we stepped onto the larger landmass, a crushing weight pressed down on us.

“Ugh, Noah! It’s so heavy!” Yuri gasped, collapsing to her knees, her face contorted in pain.

“The gravity here… it’s much stronger. We need to move slowly.” I helped her to her feet, my own body struggling under the increased weight.

Then, the gravity shifted again, not into weightlessness this time, but into a disconcerting lightness, as if we were being pulled upwards.

“It’s fluctuating,” I muttered, scanning our surroundings. “We have to adapt. Fighting it will only exhaust us.”

A sudden gust of wind swept through the area, and just as quickly, the gravity stabilized.

“Noah… what are we supposed to do here?” Yuri asked, her voice laced with frustration.

“We have to find the rhythm,” I said, holding up the compass. The needle wasn’t pointing in any particular direction, but it pulsed with a faint light. “This island is much bigger. Let’s explore.”

We trudged towards the center of the island, the heavy air of the Abyss pressing down on us. The terrain was bizarre, twisted and distorted, playing tricks on our eyes, making it difficult to maintain our bearings.

“Noah, look.”

In the distance, towards the center of the island, a faint light shimmered. It seemed to emanate from the very heart of the landmass, pulsing with a strange energy that alternately pulled and pushed at us, disrupting the already unstable gravity.

“Let’s go,” I said, checking the compass. The needle trembled, pointing towards the light. “I think that’s where we need to be.”

As we drew closer, the gravity intensified, making each step a struggle. Finally, we reached a large stone slab, etched with a glowing, hexagonal pattern.

“This is… the fifth floor’s pattern,” I murmured.

“But what does it mean?”

As if in answer, the pattern flared with light, flooding our minds with a cryptic message.

“In the starlit darkness, seekers find their way. Where weightless winds collide, can you discern above from below?”

I stumbled back, clutching my head. This wasn’t just a clue; it was a riddle, a challenge.

“Noah, what does it mean?” Yuri asked, her voice filled with confusion.

“It’s about gravity,” I said, “but not just the physical kind.”

As I spoke, the light from the pattern intensified, enveloping the entire island. The ground beneath our feet began to shake, the gravity fluctuating wildly, throwing us off balance, pulling us up, then slamming us back down.

“Noah! I can’t… I can’t move!” Yuri cried, struggling to maintain her footing.

“Stay calm, Yuri! The pattern wants us to find our center! We have to work with the gravity, not against it!”

But it was easier said than done. My body lurched and swayed, my feet barely touching the ground one moment, then flung upwards the next.

“Noah!” Yuri screamed. I saw her form, high above, tossed and turned by the erratic gravity, like a puppet on invisible strings.

“Yuri! Find your center! If we don’t figure this out, we’re done for!”

But even as I shouted the words, I didn’t know the answer. The gravity shifted again, throwing me upwards, then sending me plummeting back down.

But this time, as I fell, something clicked. A childhood memory surfaced, unbidden. My younger sister and I, playing in the river. I’d struggled against the current, while she’d simply… let it carry her, effortlessly adjusting her position, moving with the flow.

“Relax, brother,”
she’d said, laughing.
“Let the water take you.”

Relax.

“Yuri!” I shouted. “Stop fighting it! Relax your body!”

“Relax?! Are you crazy?!”

“Trust me! The more you resist, the worse it gets. Let go. Feel the flow. I’m going to try it.”

I took a deep breath, loosening my muscles, letting go of my fear. As the gravity shifted, I didn’t resist. I let it carry me, my body spinning and turning in the distorted space.

And then, slowly, I began to find my center.

“Yuri, try it! You can do it!”

Hesitantly, she lowered her arms, relaxing her body. The wild fluctuations lessened, her movements becoming smoother, more controlled.

“Noah… it’s working! I’m… I’m stable!” Relief flooded her voice.

As we moved with the flow of gravity, the pattern on the stone slab pulsed with light, a new message echoing in our minds.

“The flow accepts those who do not resist, opening paths for those who cross boundaries.”

I looked at the pattern, understanding dawning. This wasn’t just a Trial; it was a lesson.

“Noah,” Yuri asked, her voice hushed with awe, “did the Abyss… accept us?”

“I think so. It’s not just testing us, Yuri. It’s teaching us. We have to learn from each experience, or we won’t survive.”

She nodded, her gaze fixed on the glowing pattern. “So… if we keep learning… we’ll find our way?”

I nodded, my heart filled with a cautious hope.

We moved forward, our bodies now working in harmony with the fluctuating gravity. The once chaotic space felt different, almost… navigable. We were beginning to understand its rhythm, its flow.

When the gravity lessened, we floated gently upwards, using our hands to steer. When it intensified, we planted our feet firmly, lowering our center of gravity. We were no longer fighting the Abyss; we were dancing with it.

“Noah,” Yuri said, laughing, spinning gracefully in the air, her hair swirling around her, “I think we’re getting the hang of this!”

“Definitely an improvement,” I said, grinning, pushing off from a nearby wall, using the weightlessness to propel myself forward.

“It’s actually… kind of fun! Like you said, going with the flow makes it so much easier.” She moved effortlessly between the floor and ceiling, her earlier fear replaced by a newfound confidence.

As we ventured deeper, the landscape changed. The distorted structures remained, but now, signs of destruction were evident: scorch marks, broken machinery, a sense of something… catastrophic.

“Noah, look.”

We stopped before a grim tableau. Scattered equipment, frayed ropes, and a skeleton, slumped against a wall, still clutching a broken tool.

“Another… adventurer,” Yuri murmured. “Someone who tried, and failed.”

Yuri noticed something small lying next to the skeleton. “Noah, what’s this?”

It was a small, palm-sized metal device, etched with a simple pattern. I picked it up. It was surprisingly clean, as if untouched by time.

“An artifact…”

As I held it, a faint vibration resonated through my hand. The surface of the device glowed with a soft light.

“This isn’t just any object, Noah. It’s something… from the Abyss.”

“I agree. But what does it do?”

Suddenly, the device activated, one side sliding open, revealing a complex array of lights and symbols. The lights flickered and danced, mirroring the fluctuations in gravity around us, creating a visual representation of the invisible forces at play.

“It’s… a gravity reader,” I murmured, realizing its function. “It shows us the patterns.”

“That would have been useful earlier!” Yuri sighed, then glanced back at the skeleton. “I wonder what he was trying to do with it. He must have failed to use it correctly.”

“Maybe the Abyss can’t be conquered with tools alone,” I said quietly.

We stood in silence for a moment, contemplating the fate of the fallen adventurer.

“This will help us navigate the gravity,” I said, clutching the device. “But we still have to be careful. The Abyss always has more surprises in store for us.”

Yuri nodded, and we moved on, leaving the skeleton and its forgotten quest behind, venturing deeper into the heart of the Abyss.