Chapter 17 - Echo XV — Frescoes & Secrets

Adam, overwhelmed by the grandeur of the hall, couldn't believe his eyes.He admired the decor, head tilted back, mouth wide open, eyes wide.Instinctively, he reached out toward Kael without even looking,seeking a physical touch to make sure he wasn't dreaming.Kael, also impressed by the splendor of the place,remained much more measured.After all, what he had seen and endured recently far surpassed this vision,making his awe much more contained.Suddenly,he felt Adam's hands blindly groping his face.Irritated,he slapped him sharply on the head.— Ouch! Why'd you do that, Brutus?! Adam cried out, rubbing his skull.Kael raised an eyebrow and replied, a smirk playing on his lips, teetering between amusement and warning:— Next time, think before you grope around with your hands.Adam, half-serious, half-blasé, raised his hands in surrender.— Yeah, yeah, sorry, got it…Slightly offended,he stepped forward decisively toward the hall's entrance,snubbing Kael with a feigned indifferent pout.But barely had he crossed the threshold when Kael grabbed him violently by the collarand yanked him back with a sharp pull.— You're nuts! I stopped bothering you and you keep it up? You wanna fight, huh?!Kael didn't answer immediately.This time, he was truly serious.Without a word,he picked up a fist-sized rockand threw it straight ahead,right where Adam's foot would have landed.A metallic clang tore through the air.Under their eyes,a square slab about a meter wide suddenly sank into the ground,triggering sixteen sharp stakes as tall as Adam himself to shoot up.A cold shiver ran down Adam's spine.His face went pale,his blood seeming to drain from his body.If he'd taken even one more step…In a daze,he suddenly saw Kael's hand extend in front of him.He stared at it for a moment,then remembered.Kael had saved his life countless times.Distrusting him,doubting his intentions,was an unforgivable mistake.Without hesitation,Adam accepted the helpand stood up.Then, suddenly,he punched himself in the face.— Sorry… I don't know what came over me. I was stupid,he said bitterly,biting his lower lip,clenching his fists.His frustration wasn't just from his helplessness.It was also the accumulation of all those momentswhen Kael had been there for him,and he could never really repay the favor.Kael watched him for a moment,then smiled lightly.— Come on, I'll lead. You cover my back.Then, with a playful and mocking look:— And if you screw up, don't worry, I'll personally impale you on those stakes before they do.Despite himself,Adam shivered slightly before letting out a nervous laugh.— Haha… Got it, boss.And this time,he stayed well behind Kael.During their slow progress,one aspect of Kael hadn't yet been addressed…The trap Adam had narrowly avoidedwasn't by chance or a mere detail,but because Kael clearly saw the trap's mechanisms:the stakes beneath the slab,the zone triggering the mechanism.He partially understood what Thanatos meantwhen she told him he would begin to see the worldthat had once been hidden from him.This had to be part of it, probably.Indirectly,Thanatos had saved his friend's life,but Kael put that thought aside.It wasn't the right moment to dwell on it.Despite this avoided trap,he realized the hall was essentially a death hall.There were more trapped slabsthan it would be easier to count those that weren't!The advantage,was that these mechanisms were single-use.Once activated,they didn't reset to their original state.A small relief,but useful.— Kael: Adam, help me pull out the stakes that aren't holding well, please.Adam, intrigued by the request,hesitated a momentbefore answering,in a slightly questioning tone:— Adam: What do you plan to do with them, Kael? You're not going to do something stupid, I hope!he said very worriedly,his voice trembling.— Kael: There are way too many trapped zones in this hall.Despite all our efforts, we might miss one.So, I think I'll use these stakes to trigger traps early or block some if needed.Adam, surprised and admiring the idea,let out a small sigh of reliefand began pulling out the stakes vigorously.From time to time,a slightly foolish expression crossed his facewhen the difficulty was felt.After pulling out the last stakes,Kael turned toward the hall's walls.The atmosphere changed immediately.Where the tension from the traps around them had consumed all his attention,another detail now struck him:the engravings and bas-reliefs carved on the walls and pillars,which seemed to narrate an ancient story lost in time.He approached one of the bas-reliefs.A complex scene unfolded before his eyes.Humanoid silhouettes were frozen in dramatic poses,some chained,others facing colossal creatures.The details were so precisethat one could believe they might come to life any moment.But that wasn't what concerned him.He leaned closer,observing the symbols carved around the figures,wondering if these images were connected to what they were going through.Adam, meanwhile,had stopped near a massive pillar.— Do you think these sculptures tell a story?he asked, looking at a scenethat seemed to show warriors fighting monsters.Once a safe path was cleared through the hall,Kael let his gaze drift along the walls.The mood was changing.Here, the threat was no longer mechanical,but symbolic.Kael frowned,still focused.— I think these sculptures are a warning.Tall pillars supported a vault covered in dust,and on the walls,frescoes and complex bas-reliefsdepicted strange scenes.Figures with erased faces,entities with inhuman proportions,forgotten rituals.Kael approached slowly,squinting,as if to pierce an ancient veil.— It looks like… a form of storytelling. But I barely understand what I'm seeing.He stepped aside to better observe a central figure,his finger brushing the stone.— This wall… it remembers. It's not a fresco, it's a witness.