The Heart of The Jaguar

Ash and Maya fell to the floor, pushed by those men.

When they get up, they saw that the room was very dark. There was not any light at all.

The damp, fishy smell of blood was overwhelming, and they felt goosebumps.

Ash tried to turn on the flashlight he had prepared in his pocket before they left, just in case.

He tried to calm down.

Maya, who was sitting next to him, was also shaking with fear.

Ash took a deep breath, trying to calm himself.

He called his Inventory, and took out two torches and a match. Then he lit the torches.

Slowly but surely, the torchlight began to light up the room.

The room was large, with mossy stone walls and a black statue of a jaguar sitting on a stone platform. The statue was also large and tall, about three times the size of a real jaguar or a tiger.

In front of the platform, there was an altar with a large plate in the middle. They could vaguely see that there were pictures and writing on the plate.

"Ash… This place is really scary," Maya said.

Ash was silent. He was scared too.

"Just stay focused and find a way to get out of here…" he said quietly.

They walked around the room, but couldn't find a door or any gap to get out.

"Ash, I think we should go to that plate," Maya whispered.

Ash nodded.

They walked towards the altar with slow and careful steps.

However, their feet stepped on something wet on the floor.

Ash pointed his torch towards the floor, and saw a very thick red liquid. The liquid was scattered on the floor. Some places had a lot, others only a little.

"Blood..." he muttered softly.

They looked at each other.

There were clots of blood, but not a single human or animal corpse was visible.

They automatically turned slowly towards the jaguar statue.

The body of the statue was black, glistening in the torchlight, but showed no signs of life.

Maya's tears started to fall, she cried silently.

Ash shook his head at her, and pointed at the altar with his chin.

They walked slowly back to the altar.

When they arrived, they once again looked at the jaguar. Its jaw was right above their heads.

Ash pointed his torch at the plate on the altar and read the writings on it:

Four guardians watch, but none see the same. To unlock the door, decipher their name. An ancient rule will guide you through, From dusk till dawn, and morning dew.

Then under the writing, there were pictures:

A Sun

A Crescent Moon

A Star

A Comet

"Puzzle..." Maya whispered.

Ash nodded. He whispered to Maya, "Can you solve this puzzle?"

Maya thought for a moment.

"This is usually a puzzle that has to follow a sequence. We have to find the right order, then we can get the items, and get out of here," she whispered.

Ash thought along, his brain spinning wildly. This was not his expertise, he really didn't understand.

In her confusion, Maya suddenly whispered, "I think I can do it."

Ash glanced at her expectantly.

"From dusk till dawn, morning dawn. The Sun is the symbol of the day. The Crescent Moon is the symbol of night. The Star is the symbol of dawn, and the Comet is the symbol of dusk," she muttered.

"Dusk till dawn... Dusk till dawn..."

"Morning dew…"

Maya repeated these words several times.

"I believe the order is night, dawn, day, and finally dusk," she whispered, then looked at Ash.

Ash lifted his head from the plate, and returned Maya's gaze.

"If we fail, it means we will die here..." Ash whispered.

Both of them were silent for a moment, neither made a sound.

"Okay, let's try," Ash whispered. "You press the button."

Maya swallowed hard, then nodded.

She started to lower her hand towards the symbols, but it stopped in mid-air.

While shedding tears, she whispered, "Night, Star, Sun, Comet… Night, Star, Sun, Comet…"

Then she pressed the Night symbol, followed by Star, Sun, and Comet. After pressing all the buttons, she closed her eyes.

Ash, who had been paying attention to the symbols that Maya was pressing, began to see a soft light in the symbols.

The symbols went down a little, then the plate opened from the middle to the sides slowly.

Inside the plate, there was a small black wooden box.

They took the box and opened it.

It contained a black crystal-like stone the size of a thumb.

When Ash was about to take the stone, suddenly the door opened wide.

Molly and her men stood at the door, grinning widely and holding their weapons. Molly also pointed her bow at them.

Ash, angry that they were used as live bait, took the crystal stone, and swallowed it.

Molly screamed and started shooting her arrows, "Noooooo!"

Ash activated Shadow Sword, and pulled Maya to hide behind the Jaguar statue. He started to feel something strange inside him, like there was a warm sticky liquid filling all his blood cells.

Then a notification screen appeared before him:

[You have successfully obtained The Heart of The Jaguar.]

[Item Rank: Rare.]

[Item merged with the player's body.]

[The player is granted an additional effect.]

[Item in effect.]

[Effect: The Heart of The Jaguar contains the spirit of a powerful jaguar. It grants the wearer enhanced strength, agility, and senses, as well as the ability to transform into a jaguar.]

[Additional Effect: The wearer can also command all jaguars in his territory.]

"Holy shit!" shouted Ash.

Maya turned to Ash with confusion and fear.

Ash said to her while still looking at Molly and the others who were starting to enter the room, "Maya, we will run to the exit on my signal."

"O-okay," said Maya, still not understanding what Ash's plan was.

Ash then activated The Heart of The Jaguar inside him, and said, "Kill them."

The Jaguar statue began to move and growl.

Maya screamed in fear as she saw the Jaguar statue start to step forward. The same goes for the people who were running towards Ash and Maya.

"Maya, now!" shouted Ash. He pulled Maya's hand, and quickly ran towards the door.

The Jaguar statue jumped as Ash and Maya ran, pounced on one of the men, and bit his head off.

Ash and Maya managed to reach the exit and suddenly fell, rolling on the floor.

Molly shouted angrily and was about to chase them, but the Jaguar statue, with one jump, blocked the exit

The stone door closed again with a loud thud.

They sat in front of the tightly closed door with blank looks, and they heard the screams of people fighting against the jaguar statue.

Soon, everything became silent.