Once Sharon’s libido had tapered off some, she started to explore her surroundings, pleased to find that it was a small stone beach leading up to tunnel, slightly illuminated by what looked to be glowing moss. As she walked down the new cavern, Sharon realised that the walls were becoming more and more sculpted, soon becoming clearly carved by tools in beautiful patterns, marred by years, even centuries of neglect, many patches crumbling or eroded.
It seemed the water level had once been a few feel higher. Sharon was no hydrologist, but guessed that the water had slowly sunk over a few months, possibly years. In the dark, it was hard to tell. Soon Sharon came to a larger chamber, its depth slightly discernable in the gloom.
In the centre of the chamber was an intricately carved stone pedestal, possibly an alter. On the far side was a stone staircase, leading up to a rotting, once sturdy wooden door. Sharon inspected the chamber, deciding it to be some sort of shrine. The architecture- subtle arches and complex mosaics seemed reminiscent of representations of Mary- all beautiful women with an aura of holiness about them. While the mosaics were mostly damaged and faded by time, Sharon soon realised that the figure seemed slightly less chaste, somehow, than images of the Virgin Mary. Many of the figures were naked, with nothing disguising their voluptuousness, their smiles somehow seemed slightly coy.
Sharon suspected her mind was playing tricks on her until she suddenly came across a mosaic with only the legs of the woman showing. They were adorned by gracefully curving knee hight boots, made of metal and with a six-inch heel. They were identical to Sharon’s, but for an intricately carved silver band sporting an azure jewel around where the original anklet had sat. Examining her own boots, Sharon was disturbed to find a slight indentation around her ankles, where such a band might be placed.
With a deep sense of foreboding, Sharon crossed to the centre of the room, inspecting the pedestal as if drawn by a higher purpose. As she had feared, two intricately patterned silver bands rest there, adorned by an azure stone in their centre, as well as a strange chain, resting on the pedestals centrepiece.
The chain was two strands of fine silver connecting a silver amulet to a wide cylinder of silver. She realised the symbol was common around the chamber, and this piece of jewellery had been on many of the representations of the woman, she had simply not made the connection. If worn, it would hang on her brow, the cylinder allowing her to thread some hair through it making a ponytail high up on the rear.
“You have got to be fucking me…” Sharon muttered. She sensed that this place had a deep connection with her, and how she had gotten to wherever here was, but she was uncertain of how to proceed. If a simple anklet had become a pair of boots, could she risk the new jewellery, however they called to her?
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Tue Oct 21 07:08:43 2003