RE-EDITED

The Lost City of Rone

In a time know as 803 A.R.K. lived a boy named Christopher
Deliner. He was a troubled young man of 16 years. He lived with his
family of a mother, father, and little sister, in the city of Loana,
adjacent to its neighbor, Tora the city of Teca or Technology. Loana
is a very basic town not as advanced as its neighbors. And here in
this simple town, Christopher Deliner lived with his family, who were
not known for exhibiting love to any of its members.

Christopher Deliner was a very curious boy, always asking
questions, exploring the unknown. He was a great mystery to his family
which he was nothing like. His father Michael Deliner is a notorious
miser who worked hard for his money and spent little so as to keep it.
His family looked the poorest but was really one of the richest of the
town but no one visiting from elsewhere would have been able to know
if you judged by looks. His mother Laura Deliner was a strict
disciplinarian; she always had to have things perfect, all her orders
followed to the letter. She was not a big lover of children yet she
had two a son (Christopher) and a daughter. The daughter Maya Deliner
was very immature and to Christopher never seemed to grow up. And she
and Christopher never got along. Yes, this was the family of the
Deliners.

One day Chris was talking to his best friend Bradley Masterson
who was almost Chris's double in looks and in personality. They had
been best friends since they were little children. And since they were
little kids they had been bullied by Alexander Dilwit. Alexander was
as tall as he was dumb and he was mean to boot. For no reason he had
always hated them. Well on this particular day he was especially angry
with them, and was on his way over to where Chris and Bradley were.
Alexander not one to waste words just laid in on them, but luckily
they had gotten good reflexes since childhood so they bolted. Chris
went one way and Bradley went another, Alexander had to make a
decision quick, so she went after Chris.

Chris was sent running with all his might straight into the near by
woods. Deeper, deeper he ran into the woods until the foliage was so
thick that it was like dusk. At this point Chris had realized he was
no longer being chased, but to his dismay he was lost. He had never
been this deep into the woods before so he could not recognize
anything. Well, this was the point where Chris's curiosity kicks in.

Even though he was lost he had this insatiable curiosity of the
unknown, so deeper into the ominous woods he went. As he was walking
he began thinking about his family, what it would be like if he did
not come back. He remembered the one time he had run away. The next
morning he had come home no one had known he was gone; no one had
cared, it had meant just one less mouth to feed the night he had run
away. Neither his mother nor his sister had noticed him missing, it
had been then he realized he was truly alone in life, save for Brad.

Now back to his present situation, he was now lost but was also
curious so he got himself more lost, if that were even possible. He
was weaving through the trees and brush and trudging on to find some
meaningful end to his curious travels. Then through the trees he saw
them, the faces of the Kale Mountains. At this point he noticed the
sky was getting darker meaning he'd been gone for several hours now.
But still there was this great curiosity pulling at him. He'd never
felt such a need to know the unknown as if he were meant to keep on
going and was not turn back. So he didn't, he searched the area, yet
saw nothing but rock and rubble, but just as he was about to turn back
he looked up and saw a crevice in the rocky face.

He climbed up and saw a small opening, just big enough for him to
squeeze into. His curiosity was now a hunger to know, to see what
await him within. So inward he ventured, crouching lower as the tunnel
walls grew smaller and smaller, while the light from the world outside
grew dimmer and dimmer. The light was soon gone and all he could do
was feel around with his hands. In his pocket lay a lighter he used
when he and Brad blew up firecrackers and things. Crumble Roll
Crash, Chris landed with a thud on a craggy semi -flat surface and
the confining tunnel is gone.

He reached into his pocket and lit his lighter. The flame was
bright enough to where he can just make out a cavern with huge walls
and grand towering pillars, coiled about the pillars were strange
sentences made of a foreign language. He stood in awe as he realized
he was no longer in his own time but that of the past; of another
civilization not heard, seen, nor known for hundreds of years, since
the great quake that took place beneath the Kale Mountains. He
realized he'd just stumbled upon the ancient ruins of the great
civilization of Rone Kale of which the Mountains were named after.
Crash, he heard something fall from the other side of the cavern,
and with his lighter he looked and saw a brief flicker of movement but
no more.

His heart began to rush as fading footsteps echoed in the cavern.
He chased the footsteps but when he got to where he thought he had
heard the sound their was nothing. Silence consumed his mind and he
listened intently like his life depended on it. Like a steel trap his
ears consumed all sound, he could hear the faint rumble of thunder
outside as the sky had been clouding over on his way in and then he
heard the steps again. Chris, building up what little courage he
needed headed onward into the darkness leading to who knows where, But
he followed anyway picking his way through, weaving between bulging
boulders, creeping through the path he was sure the person or thing
had taken.

Then he appeared in another cavern not as big as the other but
done in a similar décor as the one before. Then barely he heard it,
hushed breathing. He held up his lighter to the pillar from which he
heard the breathing coming from and there sat, quivering, crouched
down low was a girl around his age hiding from him as though he was
the one to be afraid of. But the fear he saw he was sure was the same
fear he knew Alexander saw when he came after him and Bradley. Despite
the fear he noticed how slight she was and could tell she was almost
as tall as he, with pale blonde hair. Along with fear he saw a spark
spirit, and knew that she would fight back if he frightened her
further.

So he tried talking to her. "Do you speak Rone or Kale?" Chris
asked the girl in his Rone dialect. He asked that because in the land
803 years ago there were two languages Rone and Kale both named after
the name of the civilization.

Rone was the capital, and Kale was the surrounding land ruled by
the king and queen of Rone. " Aka se ti, I speak both" she said in
Kale first, then Rone with a look of curiosity on her face. "Mann ut,
me to" he said in the same fashion as the girl. "What year is it?" She
asked. "Um.Year 803 A.R.K." The girl looked disappointed.

"Here in the mountains to my people it is year 803 A.Q." Then a
look of understanding dawned on his face. "So we're in the same time
period all that's different is that you say A.Q (after quake) and we
say A.R.K (after Rone Kale). So we're not that much different. Were
actually quite similar."

She looked upset as though she was about to cry. "Wrong were not
the same. You live in the sunlight, you breathe in fresh air. But my
people we all live in the mountains. We have ever since the Great
Quake crumbled the inner parts of the Kale Mountains, which fell in on
Rone trapping its people inside from then on. We live with only
minimal light beams from cracks in the walls or ceilings. All those
who tried to go through the tunnels and caverns either died, starved
or got lost in the catacombs, none had ever made it back."

Now Chris looked sad all he could think was, "Poor girl held in
confines all her life to never know the world outside." But he was
confused. "But, didn't you know about the tunnel I fell from?" Chris
asked.

"No, if I did, if any of the people did, we'd no longer be here.
We'd be in your world. Since the Great Quake, we've not been able to
generate enough light to see the whole cavern and you fell from pretty
high up. Our lights never reached that high, so we've never noticed."
Chris realized he didn't know her name. So, of course, due to his
astounding curiosity he asked. "So girl, what's your name? Mine's
Christopher Deliner."

She was surprised he'd asked. "My name is Kyla of Rone Kale."

"Christopher, where are you from? I mean out there. What's your
village name?

Chris laughed, "They're not villages. They're towns and it's called
Loana." Chris was impressed to see someone so ancient yet in age so
young.

"Kyla, if you really want your people free, then I'll help you.
But, it'll take a while and it will take a lot of secrecy to do it.
I'll help you, I promise." Kyla looked up and in her eyes was a look
he'd never seen before. It was a look of genuine gratitude.

"But Kyla, can you do me favor?" he venture to ask. "Of course I
will, anything if you'll help us out of here." Kyla said.

"Will you let me live here for a while, a few months or so, as long
as it takes for me to get you all out of here?" Kyla, a little
perplexed, agreed.

So, for the next two weeks, he learned of her life beneath the
mountains. Her parents had died while trying to find a way out, they'd
gotten caught in a rockslide. Here, he learned to work with the
people. Here, he was introduced to the Chief Kumlon who was especially
fond of Kyla, like she was his own daughter.

After three weeks, had passed Chris took Kyla to the cavern from
which he first entered and said "Kyla I want you to come with me,
you'll see what it'll be like out there before you send everyone else
out there and if you like it then I'll still help you, if not I'll
stay with you forever and help you with your people." Her answer was
simple "Take me there, show me what so many have never seen."

So they climbed up the wall, on the fail ladder Chris had built,
which barely held them and nearly didn't reach the hole. Finally they
made it to the tunnel he'd came from. They crawled through the tunnel
and crawled out into the light. Kyla saw the sun for the first time in
her life. The wind blew her hair and Chris thought her akin to a
faerie.

He took her to the woods and they walked and walked till by dumb
luck they found the town just as he'd left it. Yes, just as he'd left
it. No one noticed him and Kyla as they crept there way around the
town till they were behind a shed and stayed there till night. Then
late that night a shadow fell down upon them and Kyla almost screamed
but held herself to silence.

"Who's there?" Came a voice. "I've saw two people creep behind my
families shed at noon and not move since then so come out." Chris was
struck by the realization that he knew that voice.

"Brad, Brad is that you old pal?" Bradley nearly had a heart
attack as he realized who it was. "Chris man, is that you? It can't
be. You disappeared no, one knew where you were. Chris I'm sorry man
but your stupid family didn't even look for you and I couldn't afford
someone to look for you man, I'm sorry."

They caught up with each other, then Chris recruited Brad to help
him get supplies to free the Rone people. Brad was a little stunned by
what they told him but he knew Chris would never lie to him. And then
when all the items were gathered they returned to the Mountains.

And together they chiseled and cracked rock till the tunnel was
wide enough for all to fit through then lowered a ladder into the
cavern and one by one all the people of Rone emerged from the only
world they'd ever known. And as the sunrays came down on them they
realized that they never really missed this, that the time in the
Mountains had been nothing but a dream and they'd finally woken up and
that this new world was real.

While all the people of Rone began walking into the woods to
explore, Chris stood on a ledge over looking the forest and Kyla
walked up behind him and hugged his arm to her chest "Chris, will you
leave my now that you've fulfilled your promise to me?"

"Not unless you want me to Kyla." Kyla smiled "Stay forever
Chris, with me and my people." Chris looked down at her as the
sunbeams played on her lovely face. "Sure I'll stay and never go
away." She hugged him close. "I'm glad, just so glad."

Brad walked up behind them and put his arm over Chris's other
shoulder and said with pride "Chris you are one of a kind. No one else
would have done what you did. Chris, the town may not have missed you
but the world did and so did I."

And so the three stood on the ledge of the mountains looking over the
people who ran and danced in happiness at their new freedom as clouds
passed over the sky.