By mere happenstance did we come upon the city, our arrival guided less by intent than by the whims of fate. We had followed a winding, grassy path, the gentle earth soft beneath our feet, until the land itself began to change. The ground grew black and treacherous, jagged stones jutting forth like the broken teeth of some ancient beast. The air thickened with the acrid stench of sulphur, a foul miasma that assaulted our senses and threatened to turn our stomachs. Each of us, seeking respite, pinched our noses in a vain attempt to ward off the odious fumes, our voices rendered sharp and serpentine, hissing with every word.
The memory of serpents was still fresh in my mind, the horrors of that accursed cavern haunting my thoughts. We had lost a companion to those depths—foolish, perhaps, b
