The Lost City of Dario

 Grace walked into the cartographer’s shop and walked to the counter – “Charly!????” As she calls out, the parrot on her shoulder repeats after her -“Charly! Charly!” speaking in a higher pitched voice. A moment later she hears a loud thud followed by cursing in the backroom. Sirion, the parrot laughed – “HA HA! Charly! Charly!” he called out once again. A pained grunting response came from the back room- “coming!!” A few brief moments later a young boy, no older than 17 comes out of the back room

Grace leaned on the counter and smirked – “hey kiddo! My order ready yet?” Charly looked at her and sneered – “Grace, please! you’re barely 3 years older than me! Could’ve been my wife, don’t call me a kid! And yes… I got your order” Grace chuckled – “Oh Charly, a manly man! So reliable! so strong! Wanna come on an adventure with me? Prove yourself to be a worthy husband?” Charly blushed as he hastily walked off – “yeah yeah whatever… I’ll fetch your map hang on” Grace chuckled

 Charly returned with the map and handed it over to Grace who unrolled it and examined it – “excellent! 1 to 1 copy of the map from the diary of my uncle with an estimated location related to our kingdom! Thanks, Charly! You’re just the best in all of our kingdom! How much?” Charly looked away shyly after her remark – “W…well… It was an easy job, err… 30 silver coins.” Grace raised her eyebrow in disbelief – “Charly!!! YOu got a business to run, stop giving me discounts!”

 She took a gold coin out of her purse and placed it on the counter – “here ya go! Consider it a tip! Well i’ll be off!” Charly took the coin which was equivalent to 100 silver coins and smiled – “Stay safe Grace…” To which Sirion the parrot replied – “always! Always!!!” He exclaimed and Charly laughed – “yes Sirion, of course” Grace left his shop and waved as she did. She headed back to her apartment and checked all her equipment before going out for food. It was later in the afternoon.

 Her ship sails out tomorrow, she hired a schooner with a full crew of 7 sailors who were quite experienced, captain Jernyl was a good friend of hers by now, and this is 4th expedition for which she hires him.

 Rest of the evening and night went by uneventfully, except Grace couldn’t sleep. She found herself digging through her uncle’s diary once more, cross-checking all the information and the location of the mysterious island which appears only on the last week of the 7th month and only during a full moon. She was ready, as ready as she could be and before she knew it, the sun rose and birds sang outside her window. “Time to go!” Thought Grace as she grabbed her backpack filled to the brim

 She arrived at the pier and boarded the schooner, a small but quick and maneuverable ship which would be great in case they had to navigate difficult waters or rocky terrains. Captain welcomed her aboard and took half the prearranged payment, the later half he would take at the end of their journey. Few hours later the ship set sail and her adventure had begun.

 Grace always found the gently rocking hammocks on the ship to be the most soothing place to sleep and as a result, she went to take an afternoon nap. The trip was estimated to take them 5 days and 4 nights, arriving at the disappearing island on the 5th night.  Weather was clear and the crew was eager and excited, as was Grace. Sirion on the other hand enjoyed sitting atop the sails and admiring the views. Crew called him their ‘watchman’, a true pirate parrot, even though they were not pirates.

 Day passed without any events, as did the 2nd. On the 3rd morning of their journey, Grace was awakened by Sirion, her parrot shouting in her ear- “BEAST! VICIOUS BEAST!” As a few other crew members and Grace woke up to the shouting of the bird they rushed to the deck to check what was happening to discover a great blue whale swimming beside their ship, the parrot flew circles above the giant creature – “BEAST! VICIOUS BEAST” as the crew laughed at the bird’s claims and admired the view.

By the end of day 3 dense clouds enveloped the skies but the sea remained calm.  “Good fortune is upon us Grace” said Jernyl checking the navigation map – “The clouds are dense but the waters remain calm. Gods smile upon our adventure” He smiled at her, as Grace nervously looked into the distance and nodded – “yea…. may they continue to smile upon us going forward…another 2 days to go.”  She leaned against the rail guard behind the captain who yawned  – “aye Grace… I’ll go take a nap”

 He waved another sailor over and handed the helm over to the other sailor who nodded – “aye captn, good rest” Grace stayed at the stern (rear side) of the ship and chatted with the crewmember for another few hours. He was a new member of the ship but an experienced sailor, the first time Grace met him thought she enjoyed chatting with him. A while later she wished him a good night and headed off to take a nap. The night was calm but she found herself waking up often throughout the night…

 As did the other crew members. She could hear them waking up and occasionally cussing about the ruined night’s sleep. Some gave up on sleep and headed up to the deck, a few others remained in their hammocks trying to catch more zz’s. The sun had risen and the crew switched over, discussing how the night was restless. Jernyl sighed and exclaimed – “gah! ya pansies are just worried about finding a mysterious disappearing island! Nervousness and excitement keeping you awake!” Grace agreed with him.

 The night came once more, this is the night on which they were meant to be arriving at the island. The crew couldn’t sleep. Dense clouds covered the skies, they couldn’t see the moon or the stars. The waters were calm but incredibly dark. Without moonlight, it may as well be in the middle of the darkest cave. Not only couldn’t the crew see any land on the horizon, but they also couldn’t even see the water. The crew was uneasy, lighting up the lanterns and projector to light their way and mark their vessel.

 To make sure that other ships in the area wouldn’t ram them by accident, should there be any other ships. And as the final lantern was lit, a crew member shouted – “MAN OVERBOARD!” As Grace and others rushed to the starboard (right side) of the ship to check, they could see a body in the water, 1 of the crew members threw a lifesaver down and jumped off, but as he did and tried to grab the body it disappeared. Confusion ensued as he thrashed around in the pitch-black waters in search.

 Moments later the captain ordered them to pull him back and stated – “No more reckless jumping you fools! What if you hit a rock? We can hardly see the water!” -“But cap….we saw a man overboard and then he disappeared!” Jernyl shrugged – “Must’ve been a mirage! Couldn’t have been anything else! back to your station lads, we have an island to find in pitch black sea!” The crew all rushed off to their designated spots. Watching every side of the ship and controlling the sails. Hours passed…

 Still lost in absolute darkness, 1 of the crew members proposed to drop the anchor to avoid the possibility of collision with the island or any rocks or corals, Jernyl refused – “NO! We will find that island” Another shout- “MAN IN THE WATER!” Jernyl shouted in response- “STAY IN YOUR POSITIONS!” He handed the Helm to another sailor and along with Grace rushed to the sailor who shouted to check. Indeed…something floated in the water just below the ship… Looked like a body. Jernyl watched it…

 Nothing happened… Jernyl took a lifesaver attached to the rope and threw it down, aiming to have it land on the body, and sure enough, his aim was true. Lifesaver landed in a splash and as it did, in the dim light of the lanterns landing off the sides of the ship the body disappeared once more. Grace gasped – “Jernyl…. what is that..??” Jernyl pulled on the rope attached to the lifesaver – “the hell do I know….”

 As he pulled the lifesaver out and took a hold of it, something grabbed his hand and he threw the lifesaver to the floor in panic – “WHAA??” he stared at the lifesaver on top of which a monkey now sat. Sirion, the parrot glided down from the main mast and landed on Jernyl’s shoulder, intensely staring at the monkey he shouted – “DANGER! DARKNESS!!!!!!”

Jernyl stared at the money and sat in the shadow, barely visible in the dim light of the lanterns. The other crew member took a step closer. Jernyl extended his hand – “NO! STOP YOU FOOL!” But it was far too late. The crewmember sat down and extended his hand towards the money – “hey little buddy” he said, before turning his head to look at his captain. The parrot flew from Jernyl’s shoulder and landed on the crewmember’s arm, pushing it away and flapping his wings viciously – “DANGER!! NO!!! NO!!!” Shouted the bird!!! In that moment, the monkey stepped out of the shadows, it’s shape…twisted. It’s eyes are white… foggy…. its arms are thin and boney, skin hanging like an old rag. It’s fur is bleak and rotten! The monkey hissed as it tried to bite the crew member’s hand, which was pushed away by the parrot. The captain gasped as attempted to kick the monkey. Grace stumbled backward in fright.

 Captain’s heavy thick boot connected, and a loud crack and a hiss followed as the monkey was thrown overboard, a second or 2 later a splash followed as it landed in the water – “BE ON ALERT!” Jernyl shouted. The crew member beside them now standing, staring into the water – “what in the 7 hells was that cap?” Jernyl shrugged – “not a clue but whatever that demon was I would rather not see it again! Grab some planks to use as weapons in case it returns! The sailor nodded as he rushed downstairs.

 Grace shook her head – “Jernyl… I’m scared” he nodded – “me too little one… me too! Your bird is hella useful. Sirion, circle the ship, watch out for more of them beasts” Sirion took off – “AYE CAP!” the bird shouted as it flew. Grace nodded -“I’ll inform the crew at the stern of this and help stand to watch” Jernyl nodded – “yes please… Gods protect us from this ominous darkness!”

 The wind picked up, pushing the schooner intently forward. Even as the crew raised the sails, waves and wind kept pushing the vessel onwards, into the unknown, into the darkness. Jernyl contemplated dropping the anchor but it did not feel like the right decision. Before long Sirion landed, unable to maintain flight in the heavy wind which was only getting stronger. Waves Crashed against the ship’s stern as they propelled it forward even faster. The wind roared.

 The crew was deafened by the powerful wind and basically pulled down, holding onto the railings of the ship as it was pushed onward faster and faster, completely out of control. Jernyl shouted loud as he could but he was certain his orders could not be heard on the other side “BRACE FOR IMPACT!!!!” The lanterns were ripped off and tossed into the water. The ship was now completely dark with maybe a single surviving lantern below the decks illuminating the stairway.

 It lasted for another 30 minutes before the wind died down and the clashing vicious waves turned into gentle rocking. The crew looked around in confusion… the clouds cleared partly, a beam of full moon’s light illuminated the ship and the waters around it. And as it did, in the waters crew could see creatures swimming towards the ship. Little, thin shapes paddling fast as they could, grabbing onto any loosely hanging ropes and lifesavers climbing upwards. “MONKEYS!” Shouted the guy at the bow.

 -“TAKE UP ARMS!” Jernyl shouted- “DO NOT LET THEM GET ABOARD!! CUT THE ROPES” He pulled a simple knife from his belt and began cutting the rope on which 2 monkeys were climbing. *splash* The monkeys fell on the rope. Other members were doing much the same as Grace nervously stood against the main mast. Sirion sat on her shoulder quietly.  First few monkeys made it to the top and leaped on 1 of the crew members. He was unharmed though as Jernyl and another guy swatted the monkeys off with planks

 The monkey invasion continued for brief moments as the crew vigorously tried to keep them off the ship. Sirion shouted- “THE DIARY!” which snapped Grace back into reality. She rushed downstairs and to her belongings, pulling her uncle’s diary out and swiftly digging through it’s pages searching for any mention of the monkeys – “AHA”! She read – ‘demonic monkeys will guard the passage. To fend them off you must remain in the dark.’ She shouted – “BLOW OUT THE LANTERNS!!!” up the stairs.She rushed to the only lantern in the interior which was still burning, and blew it out. As she did so, silence befell the deck. She cautiously made her way up the squeaky stairway and looked around. The monkeys froze in place as if statues. Completely unmoving. At first, the crew hesitated but then began throwing them overboard. 1 of the members was bit by the monkeys and he too was frozen in place. Jernyl ordered to tie him down and hold him in the cargo bay.  

Sirion just pecked Grace on the head. “Idiot!” The bird exclaimed as Grace looked at the diary – “i… I thought these were just… crazy man’s tales… I thought uncle made it up, I mean come on… who’d believe in demonic monkeys??” Jernyl overheard her and shook his head – “worry not Grace… I wouldn’t have believed it either” he said as he went back to the helm.  The moonlight still illuminated their ship but the crew dared not light up the lanterns anymore. Grace read through the diary realizing it was a guide.

 The crew recovered from the shock and set sail once more under strict command from Jenryl. They sailed onwards for another 30 minutes no more when the clouds began to clear and in the moonlight, a shimmer caught their attention. Sirion shouted – “ISLAND! ISLAND” as he sat at the top of the mast, as Jernyl began adjusting the course, Grace stopped him – “no…. the diary states ‘and you shall see the shimmer of the island but fall not for the illusion, the land is true to the right’”

 Jernyl nodded and turned the ship 10 degrees to the right heading towards the emptiness. They sailed onwards, the shimmer fading slowly as they distanced from it suddenly! A bright flash illuminated the waters, blinded for a moment Jenryl and the sailors blinked and then 1 of them who stood to watch at the bow (front) shouted – “LAND AHOY!” Jernyl ordered the sails up to slow their approach. Another 20 minutes passed and they found themselves in the shallows of the island.

 Anchor dropped and the crew packed up. “We’re here… it really exists” Grace stared at the island leaning on the rail guard. A few minutes passed before she remembered she too had to grab her equipment before disembarking. Shortly after, the crew lowered a rowboat, anchored their ship, and descended into the rowboat. Jernyl ordered 2 to stay on the ship and keep watch of things, while he and 4 others ventured out with Grace.

 they safely made it to the beach and Sirion flew on ahead scouting the land. Grace examined the map she got and nodded – “according to the map we need to head northwest, through the jungle is where we’ll find the lost city of Sernala civilization, Dario… If my uncle was right about this, the artifacts we could find th….” she stopped mid-sentence as she stared into a forest from which a howl was heard.

 Sirion flew back and landed on her shoulder – “BEAST GUARDS THE FOREST! DANGER! DANGER!” Jernyl smirked -“what’s a couple of wolves? shouldn’t be an issue” but the bird only shouted “DANGER” once again. Grace flipped through the diary’s pages again – ‘howl…howl… there ought to be something!’ The howl was heard once again, closer this time. It was still night but the moon illuminated the beach relatively well. Page 73 – “the howling beast fears naught but silver and sunlight” she read.

 Jernyl smirked as he pulled out his coin purse – “silver? Well ‘ot plenty o that! He took silver coins out and handed them to the members as grace continued reading – “Though beast shall not be killed it can be frightened with ease. Keep silver at hand or best yet wait till sunrise” Grace took a few silver coins of her own into hand – “uhm…. not sure what kind of beast it is … but do we go?” Jernyl nodded – “aye! Let’s go.” As they ventured into the forest… Staying close to each other.

 Single torch in the hand of the Captain they walked slowly but surely onwards. The beast hid in the shadows, stalking them. Crew members all held silver coins and put them in various places around their clothes, pockets, belts, and hats. The beast’s growling and breathing could be heard sometimes on the left and sometimes on the right… behind them and sometimes ahead of them. The twigs would snap the bushes rustle but they pressed on until 1 crew member tripped and fell, and as he did….

 the young fool dropped his silver coin, and at that moment a loud growl followed by a swift run from behind. The beast approached from the shadows as the crew all rushed to aid their comrade, but it seemed as if the beast no longer feared their silver. Captain pointed his torch in the direction of the approaching beast which stood 2 meters tall, it’s thin body clearly starved of food. Mouth wide open, gaping and drooling as it tried to go for a bite. Claws shone in the torch’s light.

 But in that moment, Sirion swooshed by the crew, silver coin in his claws as he threw it in the hungry beast’s wide open mouth. The beast tossed itself to the side as it swallowed the coin, thrashing and screaming in pain as it whined and thrashed around in the bushes not even half a meter away from the frightened sailors. It crawled into the forest coughing and whining like an injured dog. The crew quickly got their comrade up to his feet and sprinted onwards as Sirion landed on Grace’s shoulder

 Grace followed the sailors in silence but Sirion was not silent, oh no, the bird was praising himself for his efforts – “Sirion good! Sirion is a hero! Brave and swift Sirion has saved a life! not one but 9 so far! Sirion gets a treat?” The parrot looked intently at Grace who was chuckling – “Sirion gets all the treats” she gasped as she tried to keep up with the sailors who were clearly in better physical shape than her…and clearly have forgotten that she was with them”

 Soon after they slowed down to a normal walk and walked on. Sun was beginning to rise as they approached the spot marked on the map with an “O”. Grace assumed the spot meant a search area but when they approached it she realized it was a sinkhole. A massive cave opening opened up before them. At the bottom of it water stood but gace could see a cave entrance to the side. It seemed partially flooded. The crew tied the ropes together and attached them to the trees preparing to descend. They descended

 safely into the cold waters and swam to the cave entrance. It was flooded to their waists but they could still walk and that was good enough for them. They ventured onwards through the dark cave. They walked onwards for another hour or so and at the end of the tunnel they could see an opening as the cave went up at a shallow angle. They walked onto the land and into the large open area… Empty chests lined the walls of it. They found…absolutely nothing in this cave.

 Jernyl laughed as he sat down to rest- “so…that’s the lost city full of treasures huh?? magnificent I must admit. Grace shook her head in disbelief – “no no no…this can’t be right…” In middle of the open space, a sword was pierced into the ground, besides it a boot laid. Grace picked up the book and quickly realized it to be the same as the diary of her Uncle… She examined it and indeed it truly was a 1-to-1 copy of his diary. 

However, as she further compared the diaries she noticed a discrepancy in dates…. The dates were off by a few days or some even weeks or months. And the last page which was torn out in her diary was intact this one… but the date made no sense. The date of the presumably last entry was the same as the first entry…..  “turn clockwise and push, another one, then turn and pull but do not push, repeat 3 times and then push till the hilt and you shall see what I had seen and then you will discover me” The instructions were obvious  but the message was not so much. Still, Grace did as instructed and turned the sword, pushing it in and then pulling it out as instructed. It Turned and moved as if a giant key in a complicated lock, at last… she pushed it all the way in until the crossguard impacted the ground, and as it did a loud rumble echoed through the cave, and with it the entire crew who now stood around her, with grace included fell to their knees from dizziness. The room spun, they were disoriented. 

Bright light blinded them, and they all at once collapsed. And when they awoke they found themselves laying on a grassy hillside with a massive city just below them. A large tree stood right beside them and on it, a message was carved out. In complete disorientation Grace crawled to the tree in search of assistance to stand up, as she stood up she noticed the message which read ‘welcome to the past and your future – G.G.’ Grace shook her head  trying to come to her senses still – “Grayn Gremal, uncle…?”

 Jernyl, and other sailors, disoriented and confused, struggled to get up as they helped each other. Sirion, on the other hand seemed unphased by this event, he cheerfully flew above them a few circles before dashing off towards the massive, stone city on the riverside at the bottom of the hill.

 Grace showed the message on the tree to Jernyl who laughed – “hah! Wouldn’t put it past the possibility we time-traveled… I mean what the hell else could have happened? We were in a cave and next thing you know we’re here…. in a lush green land with a city… the lost city of Dario mayhaps?” he laughed as he puked again from the dizziness – “ugghh! give us time to rest” he said as he fell face-first into the grass. Grace sat down and signed. Before she realized it she had fallen asleep.

 A couple of hours passed at least when suddenly Grace was awakened by a familiar to her voice – “Wake up sleepy head” She blinked a few times before slowly opening her eyes. Before her, Grayn, her uncle stood and smiled- “Grace, dear…you’ve made it ” People dressed in what could best be described as primitive robes were providing sailors with water and fresh fruits. Her uncle handed her a waterskin and smiled – “welcome to the lost city of Dario grace! The Senala civilization discovered a way.”

 but as he spoke Grace only motioned him to shut up – “shhhhh!! Too much information uncle! First of all..you’re alive? secondly…. this is Dario??? thirdly…where the hell are we??”

 Her uncle chuckled as he sat down beside her, plush gray beard decorated his face – “hah! I know I know! But yes… I have lived here in Dario for…50 years now? I think… it’s hard to keep track of time in a city outside of time.” She raised her eyebrow- “what do you mean outside of time?” but he only smirked -“you’ll understand in time darling…” for her…. on the outside… Only 2 years passed since his disappearance, but he aged at least 30 years in that time.

 Confused and disoriented still, Grayn and the locals led them to the city of Dario and provided them with rooms, food and drinks, letting them rest for a day before Grayn decided to explain everything to them. The ancient civilization of Sernala made a pact with a god of time in their era to exist outside of this realm, outside of the flow of time. People here live 500 years or more. Their existence is hidden from the outside world and only 1 gateway exists which is how Grayn and Grace found them.

 The city of Darion resembled ancient Rome in its architecture and dress codes. Magicks existed there but were limited. People enjoyed their long lives and isolation. Lots of knowledge has been stored in their libraries. Grace, astonished by the discoveries desired to remain and learn more but after a few days, she knew she had to return.

 A few more days passed and Grace along with the sailors decided to return back to their world. They were given a few artifacts by the locals who admired their visitors, but also made to swear an oath of the silence of the mysterious place, should they break the oath a curse would be unlocked upon them and everyone who heard them speak of it. Grace got a spy-glass artifact that could see at night as clearly as the day. Jernyl received a magical map that showed his surroundings within a 10 km radius.

 happy with their gifts they returned to their homeworld. Their journey back was safe and uneventful. And thus the story ends. It is said our incompetent treasure hunter gave up on hunting for treasures since then. She sold the spyglass to her friend Jernyl for a hefty sum and bought a house, settling for local exploration work instead. She’d go out to map mountains, caves and forests.