Trouble in the Temple

Irisha picked her way silently through the temple. She should have brought her companions inside, she knew, but… She knew how to call for help if she needed them. Besides - the walls of this temple were strange. If she just stood here a moment longer, perhaps the meaning would come to her. Fighting, of course, there was a lot of that in the histories… but these allies were weird. Generally, dragons were revered as fearsome creatures who came for Enivi if they thought Lunae wasn’t watching. Echoes of stories told by the dead passed through Irisha’s mind for a long moment. Dragons… feared, but not protectors. Not like this. These dragons seemed like… friends?

The babbling in her mind grew louder until a small, shrill gasp became evident near her hooves. A real, living, breathing Enivi stood there, though, not the spirit she expected. Moth gazed up, wide eyed at the carvings and the mural. Their mother called for them from somewhere behind, concerned. She got closer, spotting them with some relief.

Behind them, Gauge laughed gently and looked up, herself. “Oh, that’s…” her tone took on an air of confusion, “not the legend I remember.”

“Me either,” Irisha added cautiously. “Nor have any of the sailors I can recall the stories of.”
“And why do you believe those sailors? Didn’t one tell you she found the sirens and lived?”

Irisha shook her head. “If it was fake, they would have mentioned this.”
Gauge stopped and stared up at the carving, too. After a long look, she turned her gaze to the rest of the room. To the right of the group was a massive stone door, one that looked like it had not been used in ages. To the right of that was a passageway, which intrigued Gauge enough to nudge Irisha. 

Irisha reluctantly tore her gaze away from the wall to where Gauge gestured.
“Moth,” Irisha murmured to the little one.
“Yeah, auntie Issa?”
“Do you want a Kalli-back ride?”
Before they could even answer, Moth had already flown up and onto the Vespiri’s back, excited. “Yes!!” they squeaked, which echoed in the chamber.
“Hush, sweetie - We’re going to explore, but we don’t want to scare the animals in here. Quiet Bats, alright?”
“Quiet Bats,” Moth repeated quietly, then puffed out their cheeks and observed the world quietly.
Irisha and Gauge quietly made their way through the halls, the soul orbs of the three guiding the way with a gentle glow. Irisha could feel the curse in her eyes flicker and dance to the left as they came to a junction, and motioned for Gauge to follow. She didn’t know why she felt the need to follow the curse, but… the curse followed magic. So maybe there was some this way. As they walked, the trio looked around at the carvings of a grand story, a great battle - it almost felt like a retelling of Ortusi history. Unless, maybe this was just older? 

Irisha felt the curse flicker again and stopped. Gauge didn’t, however, and peered around a corner. Spying something, she pressed forward. Irisha could feel moth leaning to see their mom, trying to see what she found. Is that…
“A piece of that map we’ve been finding?” Gauge finished the thought for them both.