Welcome to Gaia! ::

It had been nearly ten years since Jhin had taken over the rangers. Instead of taking over his aunt’s home, Jhin and Kryil had opted to stay in the stone building along the edge of the ranger’s encampment where the stream ran through the edges of the property. Over the years it had turned from ruins and into a comfortable home that could fit their family of five with a large toasty kitchen, living area, study and even a workshop for his mother on the main level. While Cyrus could only imagine how the stone ruins must have looked long ago, he had stories from friendly rangers and his own parents that had described the stone structure and how it had always lingered on the edges of the clearing with the great woods looming behind. The sunrises had looked beautiful coming from the empty windows of the various upstairs rooms, the clearing offering enough sunlight for one to see the rays shimmering through the arches of the upstairs hallways that connected the three main bedrooms and rooms they had for storage and his mother’s art collections. Now though there were stained glass windows that his own mother had crafted to replace those long gone, the colorful visages showing depictions of areas of the forest - the great lake that was towards the southern edges, the waterfalls leading into Sauti, one of the great twisting trees that grew on the hillside outside of their home with its autumn foliage in warm colors and the like. Cyrus had always loved watching his mother craft the colorful images but to have them in his home, the colors bouncing along the stone hallway that he took every morning before going downstairs to the large open kitchen to have breakfast with his family, made everything seem even more magical.

It definitely made him more eager to wake up early in the morning, something that he had already done earlier that morning when he had eagerly plopped out of his bed in the room that he shared with his twin brother. The room was smaller than his parents with their arching windows and balcony, but they still had plenty of space for two separate beds and chests of various toys (many sent from relatives, especially his grandparents in Matori) along with all of their wardrobes and other necessities that fit along the walls of the almost circular room. Maybe at one point it would have been a tower room, but Cyrus enjoyed how it was at the northeastern side of their home so that he could be the first to see the sunrise. It was connected though to an older area of their home that his family had warned the boys away from, but today Cyrus felt a bit adventurous. The boys were older now and while his father had to hold a meeting with other rangers, Kyril had gone to town with their older sisters to gather supplies and attend an artisan event.

The original plan had been for Jhin to watch the boys, but the sudden increase of activity in the great forest with a new group of bandits daring to impose on the nearby trading routes had forced an emergency meeting. So while Kyril was already away with the girls, Jhin had asked Votrene, the healer for the rangers, to watch the boys. All of this right after breakfast, something that had Cyrus pouting about what to do for the day. “Sylas, what do you wanna do?” He asked before looking around for his twin, a second roll already in his hand that he had snatched from the kitchen table in his boredom. He enjoyed the spiced nuts that his mother baked into the rolls and being able to eat more than one without racing his sisters to it was one plus from today at least. The kitchen seemed so large and empty with summer having the larger fireplace almost abandoned, the twisting stairs that lead upstairs strangely quiet without their sisters racing around. A few years older, Ana was especially energetic and constantly running in and out of the kitchen while training with other apprentice rangers, something that Cyrus was also jealous of as he tried to think about what to do for the day. They couldn't bother Votrene since he was busy with work, having set up his healing tomes and poultices in the living room, and even Cyrus understood how important the healer’s focus was for the rangers. But they also couldn't sneak out either of the main doors since the kitchen was locked with a heavy bolt and the front door was guarded by Votrene at the moment. Lame.

"Hmm?" Cyrus immediately brightened up when he heard his sibling say that he had an idea. "What's up?" He whispered with a tentative look towards the area where Votrene had set up his work. So far it seemed like the healer was content since the boys were being quiet and Cyrus wanted to keep things that way. Hopefully it would seem like they were simply relaxing in the kitchen or playing about in their rooms since Votrene was more focused on his work and knew the doors would alert him to any escape attempts. The idea of exploring made a wide smile cross his lips and the youngling nodded excitedly.

"We can't go outside...are you thinking about the older areas?" He asked with interest before gesturing for his brother to quietly follow him back upstairs and along the older hallway that connected their rooms. The east area beyond their room was usually off-limits, but if there wasn't anyone around to tell them no then....surely it would be okay to at least peek around?

[Cyrus 2]

Cyrus grinned mischievously. "Who knows maybe we'll find something better than whatever is outside!" Or maybe they would even find a way outside? There was so much about their home that the boys still had to discover and Cyrus even wondered if his family knew about everything their home had to offer. He nodded in agreement with everything his brother said. Joke or not, Votrene was a healer so they were in capable hands if anything went wrong. His lips pursed thoughtfully. "Maybe? The old buildings have a lot of things." He admitted as he walked up the stairs, his hands trailing over the curving railings. Their home wasn't like the Oban palace that they had seen from afar once on a trip towards Matori, but it was still pretty big with ancient foundations. Who knew what they could find inside?

"Should we grab supplies from our room first, just in case we find a way outside or a complicated tunnel or something?" Even though they were too young for real weapons they still had things like rope, a travel bag, even a medicine kit with bandages (he tended to sneak and take a few things from his sisters when they weren't around) and his father had even recently given them training daggers just in case of emergency.

[Cyrus 3]

"I think so." Cyrus grinned happily at his brother. It was a good idea to bring something small. "I'll still bring my dagger and maybe a rope and bandages? What if we find a really high space and have to walk or swing across with just the ropes?" Perhaps he had listened to one too many stories from the rangers but the idea of finding some secret tunnel was making him imagine all sorts of scenarios. What if they ran into something spooky or dangerous? A shiver creeped up his spine but Cyrus quickly pushed the thought to the side.

"Oh! Let's leave pillows under the blankets?" He looked towards his bed thoughtfully before going forward to tuck his pillows into a little body that was tucked beneath the pile of quilts. Cyrus was like his mother in the fact that he enjoyed having a lot of pillows and blankets to snuggle with at night so it was fairly easy to make it look like someone was beneath the blankets for a nap. "What do you think, Sylas? Good enough?"

[Cyrus 4]

"Nah, I think it should be okay..." Though Sylas had Cyrus thinking and the boy dug into his belongings once more to pull out two pieces of a grayish blue rock. "Maybe we can put arrows on places that may get confusing for the way back?" The slate was something he collected from the nearby stream and he enjoyed leaving his markings throughout the exterior of their house, something that was only acceptable since the rain would usually wash it away. His expression brightened at the compliment as he watched his twin following his lead and then whenever they were both ready the boy nodded.

"Let's go!" There was a storage room beyond their bedroom and Cyrus knew that there was another passageway tucked in the back there. While other areas had been sealed off by their parents this was one of the few spots that had been left open in case of future expansions. Surely it would be a good place to start. Cyrus peeked outside of their room and made certain the path was clear before gesturing for Sylas to follow him. His soft leather moccasins barely made a squeak as he started darting from window to window, almost as if expecting someone to be outside watching them. It made things a bit more dramatic but a lot more fun as he tested to see how quickly he could move from spot to spot like a ranger darting between the trees during an ambush.

Eventually he made it to the storage room and Cyrus waited on his brother before pushing against the heavy wooden door, his shoulder forcing it open so that he could slip inside. It was admittedly fun enough to explore the room itself since his parents often placed the random things they gathered throughout the years in here, but today Cyrus was focused on that door tucked towards the back. Did the shadows seem extra dark here? Maybe they should have thought about a torch though fire was dangerous in itself. "Candles maybe?" He mused as he glanced about the shelves.

[Cyrus 5]

"Yeah." Cyrus chuckled at his twin's enthusiasm. "We'll save it for any really dark areas." He glanced about a final time before going towards the backwall. A wooden plank had been set against the door but now that they were older the boys could surely lift it. They would just have to be super careful about making noise. "Lift that end, Sylas?" He asked quietly as he looked to his brother. "We just have to be careful not to make noise and drop it." He tugged at the wood almost experimentally. It seemed fairly easily enough to lift as long as they worked as a pair.

[Cyrus 6]

"It's all that training." Teased Cyrus but he was thankful that they could easily lift the wooden plank. Admittedly Ana had once teased him that it was to keep things from coming inside from the darkness which made him wary now even though he knew she was just messing with him at the time. Mostly what he encountered when he ventured forward was a face full of cobwebs. "Eck." Cyrus made a face and pulled the dusty strands away, wiping his fingers against his leggings. "Careful the floor is a bit wobbly." He advised as he inched further along. It looked like it was a narrow hallway leading towards stairs that spiraled downwards. A smaller version of the grand stairway they used that went to the kitchen? Cyrus tried to imagine how it all came together but honestly their home was so strange and big that it was confusing to try and map out in his mind.

"What do you think?" He whispered as he reached a hand out against the wall, the cold surface a bit gritty from the layers of dust and dirt that had accumulated over the years. "If we find a really cool room do you think we could convince Mama and Papa to open this area up finally?" Maybe at one point there had even been windows but it looked like more stone had been added to seal it away. A bit creepy and somewhat fascinating. Why had this place been sealed off like this?

[Cyrus 7]

"Depends on if the risk of punishment is worth the reward." Quipped back Cyrus with a grin as he continued forward. Eventually the stone steps and narrow tunnel twisted with a lot of turns. At that point Cyrus made a game of it, darting forward and stopping at random to see if Sylas would bump into him before continuing forward. At one point he swore he felt a breeze, but his concentration was broken as he suddenly crashed through an opening. With a yell the youngling found himself tumbling forward and down into a larger chamber. While it was mostly his pride that was hurt along with maybe a few new bruises to hide later, Cyrus still made a noise of protest. "Umph." Shaking his head the youngling slowly stood and dusted off his clothing. "Careful!" He called out though if his brother was right on his heels the other boy surely would be tumbling down too. Thankfully it was a short drop, perhaps part of a ledge that had fallen away years ago with the doorframe long rotted away. Still the room that Cyrus stood in was somewhat eerie with tall walls that surely had somehow twisted into the cliffside behind their house, the building right below an upper level of the forest. Who knew such a strange place was hidden back here? Cyrus kicked at something loose, his nose crinkling as he held back a yell when he realized it was a smaller old crumy skull from some rodent that had sneaked in a long time ago. Where were they? Underground? Inside the cliff now? Or something else?

[Cyrus 8]