Reading about the group that had come before him saddened Hyernan. One by one member’s continued to fall until Byeron and his miniature dragon were the only ones remaining. Together they had continued deeper into the tomb until they had also arrived in this underground oasis of life. With a sigh, he closed the journal and slid it into his satchel. It was a wealth of information that he was loathe to leave behind, and he wanted something to carry out with him when he left the tomb as a reminder of the brave adventurer who had struggled this far before coming to an end.

There was nothing else he wanted from the tent. It was still being used by Saria and he was not a scavenger of the dead. The journal was the only thing he was taking and when he was done here and back in Joonva he was determined to find the next of kin of each of the members of this expedition and let them know what had happened.

He blinked as he left the tent and stepped back outside into the bright, magical sunlight of the cavern. Saria and Steria were still sharing with each other and he could feel through his mental link that Steria wanted to stay here for a while longer. He felt the same way. Byeron needed to be laid to rest at the least and he and his dragon had already been traveling for several hours. The clearing was as good as any place to rest.

With a quick muttered “gera“, his tent was once again ready to be used. He ducked inside and walked to the back of the tent and through another flap. The ceiling of the rear compartment of the tent was made up of translucent panels that let in the light from outside. Light which bathed the small greenhouse in its life giving rays. Various plants from his travels around the world grew in here. Some for their medicinal or magical properties, others simply because he liked them. In his free time, he loved to putter around this indoor garden tending to the various plants.

In one corner rested a large tub of water with various fish swimming lazily around it. The water from the garden system circulated through pipes to each plant and then back to the tub. The fish were fed through an enchanted feeding system he had bought along with the tank itself and only required nutrients to be added to it periodically. The fish fertilized the water that then fed the plants. There had been times when he had been in remote areas and food had been scarce where the plants and fish had sustained him. He slid open a door on a tall cabinet and pulled out a shovel. With that in hand, he walked back out of the garden, and through his tent to the outdoors.

With a twist on the handle, the runes engraved in the wood and metal of the shovel glowed briefly. A quick infusion of his magical core and the shovel was ready for digging. The enchanted shovel not only dug through most dirt with almost no resistance, it also lightened whatever it was in the spade. Within half an hour he had dug a hole several feet deep and long enough to hold Byeron.

Carefully he lowered the former adventurer into the grave. With a sigh, he leaned on the shovel and watched as Saria and Steria solemnly stood guard. Saria let out soft keening noise from her throat, the grief she still bore evident in her body. Steria crooned and nuzzled the other dragon gently, offering her support.

"Ashes to ashes and dust to dust is what we return to," Hyernan said, looking into the grave, "However, Byeron I will make sure you are remembered for who you were and for those who accompanied you on your journey." With that being said and with the sound of dragons keening to the sky he shoveled the earth into the hole, finally bringing rest to the other man.

Hyernan lacked the tools for a proper gravestone, but he managed to carve a wooden gravestone and on it place the runes to preserve the wood. It wouldn't last as long as stone, but it would stand for several decades, providing a testament to the man buried there. With that done the dragons took flight arrowing up into the air. He watched them go unconcerned. Steria could take care of herself and Saria had obviously been able to be on her own.

He had something he needed to do anyway and had been putting off for a while. Muttering under his breath he entered his tent once more and stepped into the study area. One of the wooden sides to the shelves was actually hollow and the center slid out allowing a mirror to safely contained within.

He slid the mirror out and locked it into place. Carved into the glass runes lined the edges of the mirror and at the top in the center was a larger rune. He placed his hand on the large rune and called out, "Emberly, if you can hear me I would like to talk with you." The rune flashed an emerald green and then faded to a soft glow. He pulled out one of the books he had been studying and sat down, waiting for a response from one of his few close friends. Barely a few pages into the book the runes flashed a brilliant white and then started to switch between white and blue.

Standing up he placed his hand on the rune and this time connected his magic core to the mirror. As he did so the mirror changed from his reflection to that of a young, dark-haired woman. Her gray eyes stared out of the mirror at him.

"What? I'm quite busy right now Hyernan. This better be good," she said in lieu of a polite greeting.

"Emberly, good to see you again as well," he responded. "I've found it..."

Before he could start his explanation she snorted. "What? You found the tomb? Again? This would be what the fourth time that you thought you found the Mevobak Tomb?"

He frowned at the sarcastic response, but he couldn't refute her statement. The last time he had been so sure that the tomb he had found had been the Mevobak Emperor's tomb. It wasn't his fault that it was from the fifth Agrana Dynasty who had been so taken with the Mevobakan culture they used the same writing style.

"Listen to me Emberly, this is it. No other tomb I have ever been in has been like this. There are Fulneen enchantments and traps that litter each cavern. The enchantment on this place is beyond anything I have ever seen. Look I am deep underground and yet I'm in a cavern full of plants, animals, and with an artificial light that must have lasted for thousands of years!"

She frowned but then felt her lips twitch as Hyernan continued to gush on about the discoveries in the series of caverns he had journeyed through. Maybe this time it really was the tomb for the Third Emperor of Mevobak. Some liked to call him the last Emperor due to the empire breaking up shortly after his death. In fact, the legends and stories from that time spoke of his tomb and of the treasures it contained that rivaled anything else in history.

The one item though that the tomb was known for was a magical artifact that could change whole countries, move mountains, and create seas. That was what Hyernan had been after for all these years.

"Fine, fine," she said, "I can see how much you think this is it. Have you found it then? Have you found the Emperor's Sceptre?"

Hyernan shook his head, "Not yet. I am getting close though. You wouldn't believe what this cavern looks like. There is an entire river here and in the middle of the lake that it empties into is where I think the final tomb is located. I'll be there by tomorrow, but I don't know how long it will take to navigate inside."

He paused and looked at her, "Emberly, I need you and your airship. Whatever I find, I need to get it back to Joonva before anyone else finds out. Once anyone else knows I've made it this far there will be a rush to get here. You and I both know there are... individuals who will stop at nothing to acquire the Scepter."

Emberly nodded, but then frowned, her eyebrows narrowing as she thought about what he had said. "Even if I head there right now, which I can't mind you, I wouldn't be there for at least a week. I'm halfway across the province chasing down a pirate airship. I've contracted with the Republic to eliminate this particular thorn in their side before I can do anything else."

He shrugged, "It doesn't matter. I'm sure it'll take at least that long to get through the tomb. Just... get here when you can. You're the only one I would trust with this."

"I'll be there as soon as I can Hyernan. Meanwhile, I'll leave you a mirror message once I can go your direction... Where are you anyway?"

Relief filled Hyernan with the knowledge that one of his closest friends would be there soon. "Thank you Emberly. You know I'll owe you a lot for this. I'm in the Western Reaches near the Yulan Desert. Look for the Gleena Oasis and let me know when you see it. I can direct you from there."

Her lips twitched up into a smile as she said, "Hyernan, you already owe me so much I don't think you'll ever pay it off." She laughed and with a wave of her hand severed the connection.

The mirror in her cabin faded and then only showed her reflection. Her eyes flicked over the window in her cabin and she stared out at the ground rushing below as the airship journeyed toward the last known location of the pirates she was hunting. She stood there in thought, contemplating what she had learned.

Hyernan's mirror also faded back to only showing a reflection as his own connection disappeared. He grinned and slid the mirror back into its holder.

Another mirror, a much smaller, and yet more complex device, also faded. The reflection showed an older man with graying hair and ice blue eyes staring back into it. The conversation had not been intended for him, but he had heard it anyway. Interception mirrors were not cheap, or easy to use, and required tuning to a mirror it was intercepting. His gamble on Emberly being involved in Hyernan's quest had paid off and now he had an idea of where he was.

Turning the unknown man started pulling maps from a shelf and laying them on the table muttering to himself.

Hyernan left the study area and walked over to the corner dedicated to a work area. It was time to redo his satchel. The last few days had depleted some of his supplies and seeing the buildings on the island had made him think that he needed a few more potions, some additional food, and rope added to his satchel's compartments. If there was one thing he was sure of having enough supplies was one of the things that had saved him in the past in other ruins he had explored.

He gathered the necessary items and neatly stored them away in the satchel, double checking to make sure each potion was securely in its place. With that done he poked his head out of the tent and spotted the dragons circling above the clearing. He concentrated and could feel Seria's hunger and like a distant echo the hunger of Saria through the shared link. He flashed a quick thought of food to Saria and felt her response as the distant dragons angled down and headed to the clearing. Grinning to himself with the thought that the next day he would enter the ancient buildings that housed the Third Emperor of Mevobak he prepared a quick dinner and set out food for himself and both dragons. The miniature dragons flew in and landed on the table, wings flaring as they shed airspeed. Saria bobbed her head at Hyernan thanking him for the food and everyone tucked in. Once dinner was over and cleaned up each one of them found a spot to rest and for the occupants of the tent, the day was over. As he slept Hyernan dreamt of treasures he was sure to find, with little thought to the dangers those treasures may be guarded by.