"Damn, it's darker than the emperor's conscience down here," Vyan muttered, flicking his wrist to summon a small orb of fire in his palm. The warm glow cast eerie shadows on the stone walls as he cautiously descended the stairs.
When his feet finally hit solid ground, his nose crinkled in disgust. A rancid stench assaulted his senses, and he noticed a thin stream of black water trickling by his boots. "Well, Tia hadn't been kidding with Katelyn about this place turning into a sewage. Maybe coming here without preparation was a bad idea."
Despite knowing why Celeste had forbidden him from venturing into these tunnels, Vyan had his own reasons for disobeying. He couldn't rest easy without finding out about his brother. He was sure that if Celeste believed his words, she would also have been desperate to find Aster.