Twin waterfalls on opposite sides tumbled into the pit, foaming and roaring as they crashed into the lake below. Angélio looked up, following the lovely vine ladder ascending to the hole above that looked like a fist-sized disk from which misty, yellow light shone. It's a long way up, he thought, swallowing with a gulp.

He looked ahead to where the lake drained into a single river that seemed to be filled with millions of glittering, blue stars. The sparkling light from beneath the flowing waters danced all along the sides of the cave and on the black stalactites hanging from the cavern ceiling. Angélio exhaled, thankful it wasn't pitch black down there. He took one last look at his surroundings to memorize where he'd come in, figuring it was a good idea to keep that in mind.

I'll need to get out of here at some point, he thought.

Angélio walked along a narrow, rocky path that went around the lake and hugged the right side of the cave, where thick ringlet vines crept along the wall. The river sang a trickling song in his ears while the crisp-cool air showered his lungs with the perfume of damp earth. For a moment, Angélio forgot he was in the lair of a beastly serpent. Alone. But that uncomfortable thought sent an icy chill cutting through his body.

What does it look like? He wondered, imagining a giant, slimy snake with glowing red eyes the size of soccer balls and a heart-stopping hiss. Angélio stopped dead in his tracks. Have I lost my mind? What have I gotten myself into?

He was about to turn back when he heard something in the distance. Angélio instantly whipped his head forward. Was that sobbing? But he was supposed to be alone down here. The more he listened, the more he was sure someone was in distress. And it sounded like a small child--or even a baby.

Could he really leave without helping the baby? Of course not, he thought and hurried forward, following the crying sound, growing louder with each step. Before rounding the corner, Angélio reached back and drew one of the spears out. Just in case.

As he was about to step out from behind his hiding place, an enormous bat breezed by, clutching a small human-like creature in its bony claws. With a pounding heart echoing in his ear, Angélio reflexively threw the spear, which missed by a mile. He sighed in frustration. But there was no time to dwell on that. He took a breath and hurled a second spear at the skeletal terror with flapping leathery wings.

Crunch!

The spear struck its target.

A blood-freezing shriek erupted from the bat's mouth. But much to Angélio's dismay, it didn't fall out of the air--nor did it release its victim. Instead, the flying beast turned around. And the horrible creature locked those four fire-red eyes on Angélio. A chill rattled his spine. He was invisible. But that thing could see him. He could feel it.

Now Angélio got a good look at the bat. Part of him wished he hadn't, though. Cracked bones lined the outside of the creature's body; its furry head had a wrinkly, horned snout and wide, round ears. But worst of all was the long, drooling, red tongue hanging out of its knife-teeth-filled mouth.

It flew at Angélio.

There was barely time to react. Angélio couldn't throw the spear he'd just drawn.

Crunch!

Angélio opened his eyes to see the awful bat impaled on the spear he'd just managed to hold out in front of his trembling body. His grip loosened, and he dropped the weapon. The creature made a small shriek but was otherwise frozen. Two spears protruded from its skeletal body; one in the back and one in the front.

The little victim quickly crawled away from the fallen bat.

Suddenly, a hibiscus of bright white bloomed on one of the spears. In the blink of an eye, dozens of flowers appeared on each weapon--joined by leafy branches. Soon the whole bat was completely consumed by the lovely bush. And then, a dark red colour slowly washed over the petals of all the flowers. No trace of the winged terror was left.

Slack-jawed, Angélio looked on in a mix of awe and terror.

"Maraluje magic," the knee-high creature said breathlessly. "Gracias, young warrior." It bowed low right in Angélio's direction.

Angélio looked at his hands, which were very much invisible. "¿Me puedes ver? (Can you see me?" He asked.

"In a manner of speaking," the little creature replied. "Tugas are basically blind, and that's what I am: a Tuga--well, an Ako-Tuga--but a Tuga all the same."

The being's eyes were open, but they were a pale orange colour. It had red-brown skin, a narrow nose, short, deep green grass for hair with a matching mustache and eyebrows.

"Then how can you see me?" Angélio asked.

"With these mostly," the Tuga wiggled his pointed, bowl-shaped ears and touched four small knotted squares above his nose, which were arranged in a diamond pattern. "My kind can see sounds--or rather echoes that ring off creatures and objects; they paint vivid pictures for us to sense."

"¡Qué genial! (how wonderful)," Angélio replied before introducing himself.

"It's a splendid name, but one I haven't heard among maralujes before--perhaps it is foreign? Yes!" the creature smiled like a torch had lit up in its mind. "You must be from across the sea--no, no." He shook his head. "That can't be. There are no maralujes across the anymore. Please forgive my blunder--it's likely one of the thousand provincial names among your kin. Let me put an end to my rambling and give my name."

The Tuga touched his heart with an open palm and said, "I'm honoured that the starry winds have blown our steps together. My name is Kaxu. Thank you again for saving me."

"De nada," Angélio said, relieved that he didn't have to explain what a human was. "What was that thing?" he asked, anxious to change topics.

Kaxu turned to the hibiscus bush and whipped a tear from his eye. "He was my friend."

"Your friend?" Angélio wrinkled his forehead. "It looked like it was trying to eat you."

"He was," Kaxu nodded.

"That sounds like a strange friendship," Angélio scratched the back of his head.

Kaxu sighed. "He wasn't always a murcalix (bat demon) --he was once a Tuga named Baltun."

"What happened to him?" Angélio asked, leaning closer.

"I don't know," Kaxu shook his head. "Baltun is the fourth Tuga in my village to become a murcalix, and no one knows why. He gave Lanai--my sister-- a betrothal orchid. They were to be married in the Month of the Moon this Cycle..." his voice trailed off and trembled. "I thought I could reason with him, but my güela (grandmother) was right: 'once they become like that, reason cannot reach them...' And apparently, neither can friendship."

"Lo siento (I'm sorry)," Angélio said as his heart broke. "And I'm sorry about... the spears--I promise I wouldn't have thrown them if I knew he was your friend--I thought you were in danger."

"It had to be done." Kaxu dried his face with his black shirt sleeve and straightened the red cloth with the colourful and intricate pattern tied around his waist. "If you hadn't, my village would have another missing Tuga. 'Mercy before all else' is the path we follow. If we have an opportunity to be merciful, we seek that first because it will lead to flourishing for all. And that's what I was seeking when I snuck out of my village to find Baltun."

"That was kind of you," Angélio said, finding a new admiration for the creature before him.

Kaxu flashed a sad smile.

"I can walk you back to your village," Angélio said.

Kaxu's face became a mix of worry and sobriety. "You can't," he said in a firm tone. "And though it pains me to ask you another favour, the safety of my kin demands that I do. Angélio, you must not tell anyone that you've met a Tuga. Realania believes we have vanished from the world, and they must continue in that way. Do you understand?"

"I do," Angélio nodded. "But it seems like this place is fairly popular in Realania. Wouldn't it be better if you found a less well-known cave?"

Kaxu smiled. "That's the genius of living here: we hide in plain sight. The silver leaves and blue petals of the Takujo (Hidden Moon) Trees make it impossible for anyone to find us. So, please keep our secret, my friend."

Angélio wondered what the Tugas were hiding from, but he sensed that Kaxu would not tell him. Even if he asked.

"I promise not to tell anyone," he said.

"Thank you again," Kaxu replied. "Thank you. Sadly, I must be leaving you soon. But before I do, am I correct in assuming you are here to obtain the Treasure of the Northern Cheloel (Mage)?"

Angélio knit his eyebrows together. "I thought it was the Kanhondo's treasure."

"It's not," Kaxu shook his head. "That creature is only the guardian of the treasure, not its possessor."

"Oh," Angélio rubbed the back of his head. "So why doesn't the Northern Cheloel guard the treasure himself?"

"Because some might say he is too great," Kaxu replied. "But that mage has fogged the line between greatness and terribleness," he sighed. "Regardless, the Northern Cheloel has placed a formidable telchiwa (curse) on the caves across the river. He has made it so they all lead to the lair where the Kanhondo dwells. But the way back will twist and turn, ensuring that even if someone is victorious against the guardian, they will never live long enough to tell the tale. I can hear the eerie curse whispering off the walls."

Angélio swallowed with a coconut-sized lump in his throat. "Is... there... a way out?" he asked, stuttering.

Kaxu smiled. "I wondered if you'd ask that question or if you were going to turn back. Both choices are wise, in my estimation. But you've chosen the path of courage, which isn't surprising to me based on what I've seen," he winked. "For the kindness you showed me earlier and the further bravery you seek to practice, I give you this," and held out his hand.

A sparking smoke flashed, and a stunning amber spider appeared in the middle of Kaxu's palm.

"This is a quinobasil (sun spider)," Kaxu said to a stunned Angélio. "Please take it."

Angélio shook his head, held out his hand, and let the spider, which looked more like jewellery, climb onto his fingers. Then it melted into invisibility. The ten-legged bug climbed up Angélio's right shoulder, laid flat and turned into a pattern on his cloak as though it had been embroidered there.

"The quinobasil will leave a silk thread for you to follow on your way out," Kaxu beamed. "Farewell, Angélio."

"Thank you," the boy replied, feeling the warmth of reassurance from his new friend... He thinks I can make it out. Why else would he give me the spider--quinobasil?

Kaxu walked a few metres away from Angélio and bent down to pick up a pinecone sombrero, which he put on his head. Soon, the Tuga's white pants faded into the darkened distance.

Angélio drank in a deep breath and composed himself. He walked forward towards the stones poking out above the river's streams. One by one, he hopped on them until he made it to the other side.

In front of him, six different caves stood, running much further ahead than he could see. Remembering Kaxu's words about them all leading to the same place, Angélio picked the one closest to him and marched on.

Half an hour later, the height of the cavern became pinched thanks to a thick canopy of ringlet vines handing down from above. Angélio swatted them out of his way and hunched down to avoid their bristly brush, but not before one of the spears got caught in the tangled foliage, causing it to get pulled out of its woven holder on the boy's back. Since he didn't notice, Angélio pressed on.

Will this cave ever end? He thought and then tripped over something.

Upon closer inspection, Angélio discovered what looked like bones and two broken maralujo wings. A cold bolt of fear rushed through his body. And he ran forwards as fast as his feet could take him.

A bright light forced him to squint. For a moment, Angélio thought it was the sun. It can't be; I'm underground, he thought. But sure enough, it was the sun--or rather a smaller version of it not unlike the one in his room in the castle. The space he was now in looked less like a cave a more like an expansive room. 

Grey, stone bricks encased the area right up to the top until they vanished in the clouds. Colourful, serpentine knotted patterns were painted on the walls, slithering away like living snakes. The effect was enchanting and disorienting.

Up ahead, the room widened slightly. There, something blue and golden shimmered in the sunny rays. Behind it, a wall of cascading waterfalls fell, filling the space with the sounds of gentle rains and a salty scent. A long, brown vine covered in triangular leaves and thick, red thorns hung from the sky-like ceiling.

Flanking either side of the white, cobblestone path that ran down the centre of the space stood towering wooden columns around which carved gigantic serpents wrapped around from top to bottom. At their peak, the snake's mouths were open wide and contained liquid-looking blue fires with golden tips that swayed and burned atop the columns.

"Welcome, intruder," said a booming voice that made the columns shake.

Angélio's eyes grew wide. A colossal serpent-like creature rose in front of the waterfall. Its body was covered in glinting blue feathers; the paler shades were lower towards its tail, and the blues grew deeper the closer they were to its enormous face. It had a brilliant cockatoo-like crest of golden feathers upon its head. While the upper part of its mouth was golden and resembled the beak of scarlet macaw. And its underbelly was lined with row upon row of white scales.

Terrifying and somehow beautiful, Angélio thought, trembling as he craned his neck upwards to gaze at what was surely the legendary Kanhondo.

♧♧♧

If you're enjoying this ONC novella, be sure to check out "Golden Appels of the Sun" bypixelmum

After her silent vengeance culminates in a violent last battle, Selvali stands amidst the deadly silence of her fathers' desolate empire in Ghonami. Desolate, until a mangled, trembling hand rises from beneath the bodies — and a face looks up. A face of a person who, in just a fleeting few days, would force Selvali to face her past, her pain, and her deepest fears.

The face of Erappuyal, the cursed clairvoyant.