Firegem Cave (Hidden Jewels)

Firegem Cave is a medium-sized, gem-laden cave located on the coast of the Ashfall Waste, close to the border between it and the Shifting Expanse. To most, the cave is a mere myth, a story spread by Fire Bards and other storytellers throughout the land. After all, despite vast searches done by multiple dragons, the cave hasn't been seen by any dragon in centuries; its exact location is a mystery.

One thing that is suspected is that the original Banescale Dragons knew the location of the Cave and also that it was sacred to them in some way, but all the dragons that would be able to confirm this were all killed in the devastating ice attack the Gaolers sent their way. Perhaps it's for the best.

## Overview/History

It is said that the original phoenix, also the ancestor of the phoenix, known as The Firebird, was born within the Cave's depths, long before the modern breeds came into existence. The egg itself, large, round, and orange, with seemingly pulsing dark orange "veins" crossing the surface, was likely created by Sornieth itself, much how it creates the elementally-aligned dragon eggs. The bird was born within the heavily magically-charged cave, shrieking and larger than most existing dragons.

The bird spent all of its childhood and adolescence in this cave, never emerging and feeding from the gemstones lining the walls. It grew in power and size, until it was around the size of a small Guardian dragon, feathers pitch black and lined with golden and orange markings. It was at that time that it left, to travel the world beyond the cave in which it was born.

A bird that size was not missed by the dragons who lived at that time, and while most stared at it in awe, others worshipped it, and others tried to hunt it with no avail. It was elusive, smart, and knew how to evade dragons, finding good places where it could hide, with the black and orange landscape helping it along the way. Any feathers it shed were coveted, collected, and well-taken care of.

When it was seen, it was only seen within the Ashfall Waste; it never left the hot lands, and it likely wouldn't survive out of them, being a creature of pure fire.

After some time, the Firebird had "Children" of its own; the Phoenix. They were created by the Firebird, a species of flame and smoke that would never truly die; they would eventually burst into flames, but would be born anew among the ashes in small, speckled eggs. They weren't hunted, not after a couple dragons found out just how dangerous the Phoenixes were.

The hunts continued, even after the Firebird seemed to just disappear, a few decades after it was first seen. It is said it returned to its birthcave one last time, to seal the one above water entrance to it before flying off to never be seen again.

To this day, the Firebird hasn't been seen since the modern breeds were created. No one knows where it lives, if it is even still living, and if there are any more of its kind out there. Not a living soul has seen it or another. Perhaps it will be found out one day.

It is also said that most Phoenix are also born from eggs that seemingly come from nowhere, always in the Ashfall Waste, usually in areas with strong magic. The phoenixes that the Firebird created haven't been seen anymore either, but it's also said that the Smoke Gyres, smoky and fiery birds commonly seen in the Ashfall Waste, especially the Molten Scar area, are descended from those very Phoenixes, even if they have very little trace of the powerful magic their ancestors have and definitely don't have an ability to be reborn.

The Cave itself was created back when the deities molded the world, of course created by the Flamecaller Herself. She felt as if her land deserved a pretty masterpiece all of its own.

It used to be much easier to find, not as far underground, and most certainly not behind a sealed entrance. In fact, there used to be an accessible tunnel that led to it, so dragons could visit and see the place for themselves.

Unfortunately, She learned the hard way about greed. Greed is what ended up in the Cave being hidden in the end, by the Flamecaller Herself. You see, the dragons were only supposed to Look, and ask before taking anything, but many dragons took this as an opportunity to steal multiples of the gems within for themselves. After learning about the greed, after many of the jewels in the Cave were stolen, Flamecaller sadly hid the Cave, removing the tunnel and shifting the location to a different spot, also turning all the greedy dragons themselves into gem statues in the process. There are few of the statues left that are unbroken; a couple within the Cave itself, by dragons caught in the act, and a few others scattered throughout the territories as they got turned into statues where they last were.

She has not disclosed the new location to anyone else, finding Herself unable to trust anyone enough.

## Appearance

The Cave is gem-laden. The walls, the ceiling, and even parts of the ground are covered in stunning gems of all shapes and sizes. All sorts of gems exist within this Cave, whether they would naturally from the type of terrain or not. Spikes of amethyst sticking out of the ground and ceiling like stalagtites and stalagmites, diamonds litter the ground, the walls are lined with bright colours from all sorts of gems; the original colours of the walls only visible in a few areas, pearls lay at the bottom of small pools of water within the cave, and most of all, the Lava Opal, a gem typically only seen in the volcanos of the Ashfall Waste, lie in large scattered piles.

The only way to enter the cave is by going underwater within the outside sea, due to the only entrance being a few feet underwater. This is likely why the Cave has remained so well-hidden; it's not common knowledge that the only entrance isn't above ground. After all, the other entrance is still sealed and not visible from the outside. The entrance is large enough for a dragon the size of a Gaoler, but not any larger, to go through, and it's a short tunnel that leads into a pool in the middle of the cave. No gems line the tunnel.

The Cave is tall, a few feet taller than the tallest known Ridgeback and goes back within the ground quite a ways, though not far enough to reach any areas that might be brimming with magma. It is warmer the farther you go in, with the back walls being almost too hot to touch for any non-Fire dragons. The back wall also has more lava opals, fire opals, and rubies than the rest of the Cave.

The ground itself is as black as the darkest obsidian, with darker crack-like markings lining the surface, as though the ground is beginning to cave in. A few holes pockmark the ground, devoid of gems. The ceiling is not bare, just as littered with gems as the walls, with spikes of purple and red jutting down. The ceiling is devoid of the crack-like markings, though that can be hard to tell thanks to the amount of gems covering it.

A couple lifelike statues of dragons are in two separate spots in the Cave. One is a small Veilspun made of Sapphire with a ruby clutched in its front claws, and the other a dragon no modern breed would recognize, made of Topaz with gems scattered on the ground erratically under and around it.

Last of all, the air itself seems to be magically charged. It isn't really visible unless you can see that sort of thing, but it is heavy in the air, and anything magical can *feel* it. It's all around, sending sparks off constantly, making anyone who is magic or can use magic jittery. It's not comfortable for anything magic-inclined to stay in for long.

## Current Status

It has been untouched for centuries, safe from harm and greed. It has prospered in this time, almost overflowing with gems. New ones still grow out of the ground at times, slowly, but surely.

## Trivia

* There are many ruins, paintings, and tablets that depict the Firebird on them in its full glory; dragons back then saw it as a powerful creature worthy of worship. Some may have even seen it as a minor God.
* Lava Opals are special fire opals that are infused with magic and have a specific appearance. The ones within the Caves are more powerful than the ones found in the volcanos.
* Steam Gyres are not related at all to Phoenixes and Smoke Gyres; they were named due to their similar appearance.
* The Phoenixes last appearance before they fade, a black form with orange marking the feathers, is very similar to the Firebird's colours.
* Even though many dragons knew the original location of the Cave and that it actually existed; it has turned into a myth after those dragons faded and the Cave couldn't be found. Any immortal dragon who knows has sworn to keep the existence of it a secret, even if they don't know where it is now; they don't even know if it's still around or if it was destroyed.
* Black feathers are often seen in royal garb, even if they aren't true Firebird feathers.
* Fire dragons find the appearance of the gene Veined a blessing. Skydancer and Coatl dragons that are black with gold or orange Veined markings are found special by the Fire dragons and treated extra well due to it, no matter their element.

(written by Stellori #55786 )