The long grass swiveled in the summer night, gently swaying back and forth. The occasional red or white banner attached to a worn out rusty spear gently moved with the wind, creating a sea of colors in the forest grove. Only the stars and Souta were witness to this sight.
Is that…light?
Indeed, in the middle, the ancient temple was surrounded by tall lamp posts, a faint light being emitted from them. The light fluctuated, almost as if it were alive.
Who lit them up I wonder?
Souta started to make his way slowly to the temple. There was no path from the small gap in the woods that he had come from to the temple, so he had to constantly flail away the long grass. It tickled him everywhere.
I should watch out to not step on a spearhead, I'm sure I'd get a nasty infection from the rusted steel.
The closer he got to the temple, the sparser the long grass seemed to get, making it easier to traverse the meadow. Not long after he reached a lamp post.
*bzzzzz….zz..bzzz*
Fireflies?
Indeed, the lamp wasn't lit with a flame as he had first suspected, but a bunch of fireflies swarming, producing the alive look the light had.
How did they get in there…and why? What a mysterious place.
Souta's rational mind told him that he should probably get away from this creepy place, but his mind was filled with unexplainable serenity, almost a sense of belonging.
Giant stone slates led from the first lamppost to what seemed like the entrance to the building. They were cracked with grass growing from the cracks. A thick layer of moss had formed on top as well.
This place must be ancient…I wonder when it was built?
A thought crossed Souta's mind.
An original temple of moon worship? Surely not…it would've long collapsed or someone would have repaired it many times over just like Kaito's house.
Probably something much newer…
Souta walked up to the wooden steps leading to the entranceway. Fearing that time had done its toll on the wood, Souta decided to just jump up to the small porch that circled the entire building.
Huh…this building is actually made out of stone instead of wood, it's just this outside part that was wooden. Then it probably won't collapse on me.
Souta lifted his head and brushed a bit of his hair to the side to get a better look at the entrance.
There seems to be light coming from the inside as well…more lamps? I don't hear anything…so it's probably safe to enter.
Slowly he made his way over to the doorless entrance, and peeked his head into the old temple.
In front of him was a big entrance hall, with staircases leading up on both sides of the hall. In the middle there was an arch that seemed to lead to another room, and on the sides there were two doors, one on each side.
I should look around downstairs first.
He also identified the source of light, another huge lamp hanging from the ceiling, full of fireflies.
Hmm…I'm just now starting to wonder if those are real or some…trick…I don't know how that would be achieved though.
The stone floor was cold to the touch, and emitted a tapping sound when he walked over it. Having decided to first investigate the doors that were on the sides, Souta randomly picked the left one and walked over.
I can still feel the summer wind coming through that massive doorway, it's probably very cold here during winter.
Souta pulled the door handle, and with a creak the door opened. A large amount of dust flew into the air, indicating that no one had been there for a long time.
After adjusting his eyes to the relative darkness of the room, Souta could make out some things.
There are white robes hanging from clothes racks lined along the wall…and some shoes on the floor as well.
He formed a guess in his mind
A changing room?
That doesn't make sense…or does it? I don't know enough about ancient temples to know if they had changing rooms in them…propably not in the modern sense…though it is funny imagining them fighting in a changing room like boys nowadays in schools…
There were also benched lined along the walls, and a big, circular carpet laid in the middle.
There doesn't seem to be anything else of note here…disappointing.
He closed the door and made his way through the entrance hall to the other side where the other door was at. While walking, he noticed something on the ground in the middle.
Something has been etched to the stone floor…a pattern of sorts…It's hard to make out.
A circle that has been cut in half? That seems to be the main point…the other side is a bit darker…maybe it's different… color?
Even thinking about that word made Souta shudder a bit.
Why did that pop into my mind…?
Not paying too much attention to it, he continued on to the other side. After pushing open the door Souta found himself in a room with its walls lined with bookshelves reaching high up.
Why are they all empty…
Wait, not all! There's one book.
With brisk steps Souta walked over and inspected the back of the book.
Lone Firefly's Twilight
What a strange name for a book…
He reached his hand to take down the book, but as soon as he touched it, the book broke down into silvery dust particles which flowed down his arm and ended up on the floor.
That tome must have been ancient…it really just broke down from touch…just as I was getting interested.
He looked around the room, but found nothing else of note. There was a table, but no compartments were built into it.
Lone Firefly's twilight…
Souta closed the door behind him and started to make his way into the stone archway that led to a different room. As he got closer he could make out that some text was carved on top of the arch.
It's hard to make out…if only I had more light…
As if they could hear his thoughts the fireflies in the giant lamp in the middle swarmed to one side, effectively creating a light beam that focused on the archway.
Creepy….
Souta lifted his gaze to try and read the text.
"No matter how many celestials rise to rule the sea of stars, there will always be only one shadow."