Zingtober Day 22 - Camp (Ahead)

His journey started only one week ago, but it felt like years of sturggle. From the moment PV stepped through the gate, into the unknown, he accumulated the experience of a lifetime.

A hard hike on shifting mountains, the sea that almost got him offguard, the hut made of twigs, the giant snails... all gave him unique feelings. Now he was in the hut ... looking for the next stage of his adventure!

Between the interwined twigs he noticed something that looked like a small shelf, and the gaps between the branches were giving enough intel that something was hidden behind. He slowly approached and moved the obstruction to see better.

There was a dusty book behind the twiggy wall, the ZING Guidebook II, which maybe will provide some answers. He wiped the cover clean and opened the guidebook... and all pages where blank!

His sorrow was fast replaced by hope, when his pazzport started to vibrate. He took it out from the backpack and the vibration turned into a beam of light, which started to create symbols on the first page of the book.

A map was revealed, with the hut as a starting point. His journey will take him into the deeps, as a mechanical noise revealed an opening in the floor. PV slided the panel away and seen poorly lit steps going below.

He ventured into the underground, with a bit of fear, one step at a time. It was dark and humid at the beginning, slowly becoming brighter with every step he was doing into the unknown.

After 200 steps, or maybe more, PV stepped on solid ground and had a look around. He was not in a cave as he expected, he was into the jungle and the sun was bright above. How was this possible?

The lands shifted again and he didn't even noticed. But he noticed the huge grungy totem ahead, in between wines and leaves. It was in a poor state, cracked and unstable. The curious thing was that the ground around it showed signs of impact.

It looked like this grungy totem fell from the sky! The cracks on both the surface and on the totem shows that the force of the impact was incredible strong.

He was still thinking about whom or what could have carried the massive rock, when he noticed the background noises! He focused on them and could hear whispers!

The located a strange gizmo nearby the totem, a device that was activated by his pazzport the same way as it happened in the hut. PV started pressing buttons and listening carefully to the whispers.

The device was some kind of journal, the travel log of another adventurer. It contained details of her travels, from stepping through the gate until the discovery of the grungy stone totem.

The last voice entry was "This totem has seen it's best, and it's a miracle it didn't collapsed yet. Looks like an useless rock! Wait... what is this buzzing noise!".

PV was intrigued by the last words, but had something else to worry now... as the totem started buzzing and vibrating! The monument was shattering, but then the pebbles on the ground where linking together like magnets!

He soon realised that he is in danger, as the pebbles were merging into rock golems. In the panic that followed, instinct took over! He seen some mining tracks going deeper into a cave, and he run towards them!

The golems were rolling towards him, and he was afraid that his demise will be cruel and painful. But this was not the end... as PV stumbled upon a mining cart! He gave it a push downhill and started the ride of a lifetime!

The golems were still in the chase, but clearly slower than the mining cart rolling down on the tracks. He threw out the mining gear to make the cart lighter ... and the ride was faster then ever!

The mining cart was slidding throgh darkness at accelerate speed, and the rock golems were left behind. PV was safe! After few minutes he could see light in the distance, and by the look of it... he was approaching the end of the tunnel!

The cart started to slow down, but not enough to stop without a bang! The halt was unexpected, as it stopped with a crash into some logs that served as barriers. He stumbled out and rolled few times, without major injuries.

He dusted off and noticed the end of the tunel was leading to a ridge! He thought he went deep into the earth but now he was standing on a ridge at a top of a mountain. He was on the roof of the world, watching clouds running so close that he could touch them.

A movement made him jump, and when he turned he seen a fluffy cat chilling on the ridge! It was the cutest creature he ever seen, but he learned to take nothing for granted. Maybe the cute cat is a deadly beast?

The cat's eyes were kind, so PV approached the "beast" and touch it gently. The fluffy creature moved and revealed a rolled scroll, then put the paw on it end looked like it was inviting PV to pick it up!

He unrolled the scroll and could see a map, and familiar places. He could see the mountains where he started his trek, the hut made of twigs, the totem where he was chased by rock elementals, and the ridge where he was sitting now!

The map ended here, and the dots where pointing down... into uncharted lands. He was on the top of the world, and had to go down from there! The clouds where tick so he coldn't see what lays below! Everything is uncharted!

The cat shifted towards the edge of the ridge and jumped on a close-by rock, then on another one, and another one... until she got lost in the mist. PV understood that he had to climb down, and as his eyes focused.... he could pierce through the mist.

He could see that the way down wasn't impossible, as the rocks were going downhill as stairs. The shapes reminded him of rhinoceros, some mythical creatures he read about it. Gentle beasts with a big horn on their nose!

PV prepared his ropes, hooks and mountain gear, and took a leap of faith. He landed on the first platform, and prepared for another jump. It was scary but this was the only way down!

He was nearly half-way, and his hands and legs were hurting from the effort. The mist was left behind, and he could see the plains below without any obstructions. He could see shapes in the distance... he could see tents and signs of civilisation.

Camp Ahead! It was clear that other adventurers were camping in the valley bellow, and he was hoping to reach them soon. He was alone since the start of the journey, and was looking for guidance and support!

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