Tenaro gaped at the view, unable to believe his eyes. He could move his gaze away from the horizon as the sun climbed higher, its golden light pouring over the city below.

  Stone buildings stood shoulder to shoulder beneath the jungle canopy, their walls scarred but unbroken, the roofs sagged but still intact.

  Vines crawled along edges and through hollow windows.

  Streets were still there, narrow, deliberate lines cutting between structures, now flooded with mist that glowed faintly gold in the morning sunshine.

  The city seemed to have grown into the jungle, the buildings weathered but unwavering. Tenaro could feel the wind dying away and finally felt more heat arriving as the sun rose higher, his skin feeling the rays’ heat, *Finally,* Tenaro thought, slightly grinning from relief.

  Despite the grand size of the city, the buildings stuck out like sore thumbs in the environment, like blots in the landscape.

  *Weird…* Tenaro thought, then he tore his gaze from the view, looking down. He leaned over the cliff’s edge and peered down.

  *How do I get down this thing?* He wondered, looking around for any means of descent.

  The drop made his stomach curl, the cliff stretching steep and unforgiving, the rock face disappearing into the shadows below.

  *Wow.* He thought sarcastically.

  His eyes traced the cliff wall, he noticed to his right, there was a vine hanging a distance from the edge from a tree's branches stretching over the edge, the vine stretching a long way down, but seemed too far to jump, he looked at the cliff wall again, and noticed small, uneven ledges protruding from the wall, like the remains of steps gnawed down by time.

  His gaze shifted. The old buildings below, the roofs were close enough to aim for.

  He sat on the edge, scratching the back of his head, measuring the distance and risk. Along the ground below the vines, he could see that the ground rose slightly, shortening the fall.

  He sprang up to his feet and broke into a run towards the tree that held the vine, and he looked down the cliff to see the ground that made fall shorter.

  When Tenaro reached the tree, he noticed the age that the boasted of, the thick trunk bearing the mark of a gouge. Eyes wide, Tenaro put a palm on the wood, feeling its wound.

  *Did a sword do this?* He wondered, pulling away from the tree and turning to the edge again, feeling a bit of excitement rising inside him as he stared at the preserved ruins.

  He twisted his body and slid his legs down, boots scraping the rock until they found a purchase.

  One foot, then the other, his muscles tightening as he lowered himself down the cliff, his lingering gripping the ledges, following after his body. The ledges were narrow and barely wide enough for his boots, but they held.

  He could see the roofs of the buildings closer now, but as he climbed down, his left foot slipped, not catching any ledge. His body flinched, almost letting go of his grip of the ledges he already held onto.

  He gasped as he looked down, seeing small pieces of rock falling down. His fingers turned white as he held on the small ledges, his arms shaking from effort.

  He took a deep breath, calming himself down. He looked over his shoulder and saw that he was still high up, but the corner of his eyes caught movement of a green, slender figure of the vine dangling.

  It was still far from where he was, but it still seemed manageable. *I really hope this works.* Tenaro carefully and slowly palmed the wall, his hands flat on the almost-vertical surface.

  He exhaled a nervous breath, his breath shaky from his body vibrating to hold onto the single ledge that his right foot perched on.

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  He bunched his muscles, preparing to push himself. “Damn it.” He muttered as he tried calming himself down, his heart racing, his shoulder throbbing. It felt like two heartbeats speeding at once, except one really hurt.

  He summoned up all the courage he could get, and held his breath. He pressed his palms hard on the wall, the rough surface scraping his skin.

  He let out a shaky breath and, with a grunt, launched himself away from the wall, propelling himself into the air. He immediately twisted his body midair, hoping to catch the vine in time.

  There it was.

  He reached out his arms, fingers touching the vine. His weight fell through the air, feeling his heart race even faster. Eyes wide and instincts screaming, he reaches out his arms even further, as he fell lower towards the ground.

  With a groan, his right hand gripped around the vine, finally holding onto it, a painful jolt shooting up his arm. He held his other arm to the vine, the world yanking to halt. The fall snapped short, a white-hot pain screamed through his injured shoulder, his breath escaping his lungs. He almost let go from all the sudden pain, groaning as he tried to hold on to the vine.

  His body dangled, right at the end of the vine, *That was so close.* He thought, panting as he looked down at the ground, which was still a few meters below. His head tilted back and could see more lush trees at the edge of the cliff, some vines even reaching the ground.

  *Would you look at that.* Tenaro thought, deadpanned.

  His arms screamed when his body finally lost momentum and could breathe, his shoulder still stinging. He looked down, spotting a rooftop within range. He moved his body, gaining momentum as he swung faster. When he was fast enough, he let go at the right time, bound to fall on the roof. He squinted his eyes as he fell, wind blowing into his eyes.

  The roof hit him hard, breath bursting from his lungs again as he rolled with the impact. Mud smeared across his clothes, cold and heavy, Tenaro just lay there, staring at nothing as he clutched his arm in pain, his eyes twitching.

  Yet another groan escaped from his lips. That was all the complaint he had left, now that there pain subdued a little.

  He pushed himself up, brushing the mud with very little success and wiped off some mud from his face. He stood to his feet and checked his swords for any scratches, then he looked around. The air was thick with the smell of damp moss, rot and animal waste. The scents clung to his nose, and he scrunched his face, covering his nose.

  Above him, on a taller building, monkeys shrieked and argued, a blur of movement as they fought over who knows what.

  The buildings stood tall and proud, despite their age, too stubborn to fall, clothed in moss and vines. Now that Tenaro was up close, he noticed how the buildings’ shapes seemed too intentional. Too unfamiliar for a jungle. The trees burst through some cracked stones, roots crawling over walls like veins reclaiming a corpse.

  He walked to the edge of the roof he was on, the ground not far. He jumped off and landed hard on his feet, his right fist landing on the rough granite road, ignoring the pain from his soles and knuckles. He stood up straight and wiped off some mud, which obviously just refused to get off.

  He glanced around the densely packed buildings. He couldn't feel any wind now, just as Tenaro was getting used to the breeze touching his skin.

  *How is that even possible?* He asked himself as he glanced at the buildings more attentively.

  As he took a closer look, his emerald eyes widened as he noticed the stonework of the structures around him.

  Each block was cut so precisely it was hard to tell where one ended and the next began. No mortar, just stone pressed to stone, locked together with impossible accuracy.

  The walls rose in clean lines, some of their surfaces smooth where time should have roughened them, their edges still sharp despite centuries of rain and roots and heat.

  The brilliant architecture only widened Tenaro's eyes further.

  He ran his fingers along the stones. The stone cool, uncracked, unyielding. The stone varied in size and shape, some wide and heavy, others narrow and angular, yet they fitted together so flawlessly, every single angle met by another. As if the walls had been assembled like a puzzle meant to never come apart.

  Even where some buildings somewhat had fallen, the stones themselves remained intact. The vines clung to the walls but failed to pry them apart.

  The jungle had taken the city, but clearly didn't beat it.

  Sunlight shone the edges of the stone, revealing no gaps, no weaknesses.

  Tenaro held his breath, mesmerized by what he was seeing. He turned back to the house he'd jumped from, a short staircase led to an arched entrance, moss carpeting every step.

  Tenaro climbed it, feeling the soft texture of the moss as he climbed. Inside, the space opened into a simple room. A table stood in the center of the room, barely and low. No chairs around it. The floor beneath was layered with a rotted fur carpet. Thick, white, its original shape long erased. He guessed it had once belonged to a bear, though he wondered why the fur was white, the thought barely lingered.

  His attention snapped to a fallen table near the wall to his right. Silver cups lay scattered across the stone floor, pulled by time but still catching the light. Green gems circled their rims. He walked towards them and crouched, picking one up and turning it slowly in his left hand.

  *Woah.*

  Etched into the surface was a legless lizard, jaws open in a silent snarl. Its posture wasn't wild, it seemed patient, cunning.

  Faded patterns curled around the creature, deliberate and intricate.

  Tenaro's fingers traced the engraving. The cup felt wrong in his hands, too deliberate for a place that should've been swallowed by the jungle's hunger. His eyes widened slightly. For some reason, he couldn't put the cup down.

  Not just yet.