He felt the cold surface of the cup become warm from his touch. He brought the cup closer to his face. It was like his fingers were stuck on the cup, almost refusing to let go.

  He rotated the cup between his fingers, observing the cup, and realized the object was shaped like a wine cup. There was a green gem that looked like it meant to be the eye of the snake's head.

  Sunshine poured through the empty windows, the sunlight filling the room, and onto Tenaro. The cup glinted in the sunlight, the gems shining, with the lizards’ “eye” shining more intensely.

  “ARGHH!!”

  Tenaro clutched his head with his right hand, his left still gripping onto the cup. Suddenly, he felt his head pounding against his skull, pulsating through his entire head. It felt like someone stabbed a nail into his head, a white-hot spike flashing behind his forehead.

  His skull felt tight, like it was being squeezed inward. Pressure built behind his wide eyes, impatient and unrelenting. It felt as though a pair of hands tried compressing his head, the sharp and crushing throbs blocking his thoughts.

  “AAAGGHH!!”

  He fell backwards, thudding on his back. The cup stuck into his hand, refusing to be dropped as the pain became worse.

  He palmed his face, covering his right eye, and as he stared at the ceiling with round eyes, he started hearing voices echoing, whispering in his head, accompanying him with the pain.

  “Kss..ppspsps…urssa…”

  “Hhh..shis-opushh…kkkrr”

  “Iopsps…shshshsh…mahhh”

  Voices hissed and stumbled over each other, broken syllables endlessly echoing. Tenaro's body writhed in agony, his hand unable to let go of the cup as the whispers became louder.

  “AAG-GHAA-AAARGH-!!!”

  Suddenly, his shoulder started throbbing intensely as well, sharp pains pulsing through his arm, each heartbeat making every pain worse and the voices in his head driving him insane. He could feel tears welling up in his eyes.

  “Kaah-aah…urgh!”

  His voice slowly became weaker, his screams becoming hoarse. He felt liquid rolling down his left arm, he jerked his head to see blood trickling from his shoulder again, the wound reopening.

  “Gaa-aah!”

  He snapped his head to the side, staring at the ground beside him as he groaned. He shakily raised his hand with the cup in his hand.

  “THUD!!”

  “Aaah…!”

  His hand struck the ground, the dull impact causing his fingers to finally let go of the cup, the silverware rolling off his fingers onto the ground.

  On his back, Tenaro clutched his shoulder, short, harsh breaths tore from his throat as he gasped like a fish on land. Sweat beaded his forehead as he trembled in pain, blinking out the tears from his eyes. His whistling breath echoed through the room as he wheezed. He raised his hand from his injury and stared at the dark blood smeared on his palm, the metallic smell reaching his nose.

  He got to his knees, struggling to all fours. Suddenly his stomach lunched, and he gagged, spewing out blood, red droplets dripping on the floor, as he coughed out blood.

  *What the hell… is happening???*

  His arms shuddered as he stared at the rud puddle at his hands. He gasped, his lungs yearning for air as his chest heaved. He shakily got to his feet, nearly losing his balance as he stood up straight. The pounding on his head was now fading. He felt the air was warm around him, he had felt this warmth since he entered. It seems like the house insulated the house. Tenaro felt too much pain to even think about it.

  He walked unsteadily to the doorway, like he was drunk, as he clutched his shoulder. He used the opening as support, huffing, each breath a sharp, ragged sound, as he wiped blood from his lips and chin.

  He slowly looked back at the cup on the ground, now in the shade, by the table's legs.

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  *What was that?*

  He turned and walked down the staircase, trying to stumble, and walked on to the road. He glanced up at the sky and immediately squinted.

  The sun hung high above the city, too bright, almost harsh. It poured clean light over moss and stone alike. He blinked, when he'd first stumbled into the jungle, rain and clouds had swallowed the sky whole. Now, there wasn't a cloud in sight.

  Birdsong echoed through the streets, drifting softly between the buildings. Tenaro turned slowly, trying to ignore the throbbing in his shoulder. He still breathed heavily, but he tried to take in the view around him properly this time.

  The structures lining the roads stood firm, their walls straight, corners crisp, their stone blocks boasting their precison, still flexing their ability to be stable with no mortar. But they wore sheets of moss.

  *What's with this place?* He asked himself, his breath getting steady now, his steps more confident. His chest still burned, but the sensation was fading.

  He took a few steps forward, then paused.

  The wind was gone.

  In the jungle, the wind was constant, whether a soft breeze or stronger winds. Cold fingers slipping through leaves, brushing his skin.

  Here, the air sat completely still, trapped between the stone. He frowned faintly and looked around.

  *Must be some walls around here.* He assumed, though even as the thought settled, he remembered the view from the cliff. There was no structure enclosing the city.

  But he walked on, trying to move the uneasy feeling in his chest. The streets twisted gently beneath his feet, curving and narrowing, guiding instead of confusing. His eyes kept drifting back to the buildings; the angles, the clean joins, the way the architecture felt and looked wrong for a jungle. Like they didn't belong to mud and vines.

  When he turned a corner, he paused and he gaped, eyes widening slightly. His feet rooted to the ground as he stared unblinking at a dead end. The wall in front of him basked in the sunlight, and it had a giant mural of two snakes and a winged lizard.

  The winged beast seems to lean forward, facing one of the snakes, like it was confronting it. The beast seemed tense, its back arched and wings unfurled, like it tried to appear larger than it actually was.

  He looked at the snake it was glaring at. The snake's posture was coiled, forming an S shape with its head and neck, like it was ready to strike at any moment, its tongue sticking out.

  “What the…” Tenaro trailed off as his eyes moved to the snake behind the other one. Strangely, the reptiles' body wrapped around a staff that stood upright, and looked at the winged reptile as well, but it was its head that confused Tenaro.

  It looked to be the head of a woman, its hair flowing backward to some invisible wind. Its facial expression seemed calm and patient, like it was waiting for something.

  Tenaro blinked and rubbed his eyes and stared at the picture again, couldn't believe his eyes.

  His feet started carrying him away, but his gaze was a reluctant anchor, refusing to detach from the mural. He finally looked away when a wall of stones was all he saw.

  *What is this place?* He wondered.

  The road gently twisted to the left, leading Tenaro into more of the unknown, his feet carrying him onward as his shoulder now stung softly, forming a scab. Again.

  Then, movement caught his eye.

  Two goats grazed on a patch of grass beside the road. One was black and white, the other black with a small white spot above its eye. They were small but sturdy and fully grown. They paused when they noticed him, ears flicking, eyes alert.

  Tenaro approached slowly and knelt.

  The goats backed away, cautious but unafraid. “Maaa!” The black one bleated at him heartily. Tenaro chuckled softly and rose to continue on, leaving them to their meal.

  The street bent again. To his right, a cobblestone path opened up, brighter. Sky-blue light spilled down on it, wide and open. He turned toward it without thinking, curiosity pushing him forward.

  As he followed the trail, the air shifted. Wind rushed back in, suddenly and sharp, tugging at his clothes, biting his skin once again with that coldness it carries for whatever reason.

  He squinted to the sudden air movement and walked on.

  The buildings thinned out, giving way to an open space, where more grass grew on either side of the trail, some trees growing, thick and thin, young and old. Then…

  He froze in place.

  A massive stone arch rose before him, its surface thick with age and moss. The wind threaded through it like breath. Faded carvings clung to arc of the stone, worn but still legible.

  ‘BARU NAGA’

  Written in bold.

  His chest tightened with excitement and hesitation. Around the arch lay smaller structures; low foundations and partial walls, arranged as if small buildings had once stood there.

  *Now it looks like ruins.* He commented, amazed that only a small area that looked weathered AND ruined.

  Monkeys clambered over the stones, bickering like there was no tomorrow, then fell silent when they noticed him. Dozens of eyes turned to him, but he replied with a soft smile, and after a while, the monkeys returned to their conversations.

  Beyond them, the trees grew low and sparse. Above it all stretched and endless blue sky. He walked toward the arch.

  Through it, the land opened wide.

  A mountain range spread across the horizon, distant, yet impossibly close, as though the world shifted to frame it perfectly. The arch felt deliberate now, placed exactly where it needed to be, as if the builders had shaped the city around the single view.

  When Tenaro stepped beneath the arch, his breath caught in his throat, his gaze fixated ahead, forgetting about the pain in his shoulder.

  Granite stairs plunged downward, vast and steep. Terraces lined either side, stacked with buildings that clung to the mountainside in elegant layers.

  And beyond…

  An even bigger city.

  It sprawled outward in quiet grandeur, hugging the edge of the mountain. Structures stood densely packed, rising toward a central tower that loomed above the rest.

  A low but visible body of water surrounded it, reflecting sunlight in blinding flashes. The ancient city glowed under the morning sunshine, framed by the distant mountains beyond.

  Tenaro didn't realise he'd stopped breathing until his chest burned. He leaned over and coughed, the pain from earlier still taking effect.

  He stood straight again, frozen, staring down at the heart of a civilization that refused to be forgotten.