Chapter Ten: The Symbol

Penny left the cabin, searching the surrounding area. On one of side of the cabin, there was a steep cliff that dropped down several hundred feet and on the other side, there was a steep Rockface that went up just a low as the other side went down. This would provide the two amazing defense against most attacks. There was only one side that any trespassers could really come from which would give the duo an advantage. Though it also meant it would make an escape harder to achieve. This would be a place where fighting to defend the home would be a must. And this was something Penny felt she was more than ready for.

There was however, one small trail that did lead up the cliff face though, it was very steep and Penny had to use her strength to cling to roots so that she could climb without falling down. This had taken much longer than she expected but Once she had made it to the top of the trail, she could now overlook the cabin and the surrounding area.

" Getting water from her would be really hard to do.. " Penny said to herself, trying to catch her breath from the sheer amount of effort it took to even stand where she now stood. " though I wonder if there is another way " Penny began looking around to see if she could spot another, less harsh trail though she found nothing but countless trees and the occasional squirrels rustling through the leafs.

" Hmm" Penny walked around the new area, and managed to stumble across a small creek that ran down the back of the mountain. The Creek was very close to the cabin and though it was shallow, it would suffice for what their needs would be.. The water seemed very clean and very pure. Lysette would be happy with this discovery if it wasn't for the actual route you had to take to get up the mountain in the first place.

Penny walked back down to the trail with roots hanging out from it. " I wonder.." Penny questioned in her mind as she placed her hands down on the ground. " If I am able to make crators..maybe I can also terraform a little.." Penny hoped as she began applying pressure to the ground which made the ground beneath her hands begin to sink.

" No no no..I don't want it to sink..I just want it to.." Penny tried to concentrate, as the once helpful roots, began to sink back down below the surface. A mixture of dirt and red clay began to swirl around the length of the trail and began slithering around in different directions, much like a freshly caught worm. Eventually, the trail settled, and was now slanted at a more forgiving angle. Whilst it use to be a straight path going upwards, it now possessed bends and curves but, allowed for a better traversal by foot without the need for any upper arm strength.

Penny removed her hands from the ground and smiled widely. " I can't believe I did it" Penny squealed from excitement. She had managed to make their lives so much easier by doing this and this made her feel useful. This made her feel as though she had more control over their lives and couldn't help but feel more comforted by this.

" If the terrain doesn't work for you, make it work" She smirked as she continued staring down proudly at her progress.

Meanwhile, Lysette found herself under the cabin itself. She had managed to find a trap door which allowed her to get under the house. After crawling through the dirt and clay, Lysette managed to find some old piping which she assumed to be under the sink, had been damaged.

" I know I should be able to patch this up but I'm not a damn plumber" Lysette groaned to herself. " And unless they have the materials here, I don't know how I'm even gonna make this work" Lysette growled as she decided to work her way back out of the crawlspace, only to hit her knee against a hard object of some type.

After letting out a loud yelp from the pain of the collision, Lysette shifted her body around to see what she had ran into.

" A brick? " Lysette says, shocked to see such a large brick under the cabin, a place it should not be. The brick was much more of a block given its size, but it's placement was still a mystery. Lysette, decided to push against the block and try to move it so that she could get it in a better light as it was far too dark under the cabin to identify it properly.

Once she managed to reach the entry to crawlspace, she used all of her strength to lift the block out of the hole which was barely big enough to fit through the hole to begin with, and placed it on the floor of the cabin. Lysette crawled through afterwards and closed the door behind her and proceeded to observe what she had pulled from the depths.

The block was around 2 feet in length and around 1 feet in width. It weighed around two hundred pounds or so, and had weird carvings covering it. These markings for the most part, were nothing that Lysette recognized however there was one, that she knew all too well.

Two mountains, intersecting one another. This was a symbol known by few in the Underworld, and with good reason.

" So..we are closer to home than I thought" Lysette smirked as she heard the front door open. Lysette pushed the block under a table as quickly as she could and stood back to her feet just in time for Penny to find her.

" I have good news! There is a creek not too far from here where we can get water! " Penny squealed as Lysette nodded in approval. " Okay good! Then we can stay here. We need to find some bottles around here where we can store the water. Go to the kitchen and see what you can find! " Lysette ordered as Penny nodded and ran off to the kitchen.

Once Penny was gone, Lysette picked up the brick and snuck it off to a room upstairs that she had claimed as her own in Penny's absence. After sliding it under the bed, she smiled again, feeling comfort for the first time in a long time. Lysette reached into her pocket, and pulled out a small, silver necklace from which, dangled a green glowing gem of sorts.

" You will Thank me Later" Lysette's face was covered in the glow of the gem, and she found herself mesmerized by the sight of it. Though after hearing some the shuffling sound of shoes coming up the stairs, she quickly tucked the necklace away back in her pocket for safe keeping.

" I Found bottles, but I'm not sure which ones you want to use" Penny called out as she finally managed to find where Lysette was.

" That's good, we will go and collect the water in a little bit. Go and find yourself a room " Lysette's happy tone put Penny in an even better mood as she ran back downstairs to put down the bottles and to find herself a new room.