Chapter 04: future?

Known for the mystery that surrounds them, the ruins are the only ones capable of providing some information about past history.

Before the appearance of the gods, long before that, there were beings of great power who walked the earth. Which have been forgotten by time.

Unknown beings who were able to confront and even defeat the gods on more than one occasion.

---

The waves of the sea hit the rocks of the coast. Seabirds flew along the coast in flocks or walked on the sea waters.

"the sea, I didn't expect to reach the coast. Where did I end up after being teleported?"

From the moment I arrived, I always asked myself that question. As the days passed, my interest about this place began to wane, but was replaced by magical technology.

While exploring, I found traces of magic circles other than the one I teleported to. It was not the only one, remains of ruins showed remains of machinery or some type of artifact.

After walking for a while on the seashore, I found a dry forest. Noticing my presence, flocks of crows flew out of the dry branches of the trees. All kinds of insects could be found.

"human bones?" I was surprised to see a couple of bones lying on the ground, I couldn't recognize them, but the skull was undoubtedly that of a human. When I tried to pick it up from the ground, it turned into white powder at my touch.

I quickly inspected everything around me with my eyes. The worn trunks of trees, bushes and dry grass, there is nothing strange around me.

In the middle of the forest, ruins of buildings lay almost gone. The sun was beginning to set, darkness was beginning to take over the entire forest. The shadows of the dry trees were projected on the surface, sometimes forming strange patterns.

Stone bricks were the only ones that managed to survive the erosion of time. Due to its characteristics it was some type of town or camp. It was impossible to know, the trees had grown and nature took back its own. A small open field still remained, possibly used as some type of square.

The roots destroyed the ground beneath the buildings. I was lucky to be able to find a ruin in better condition. As I got closer, I found the same thing as before.

Some pieces of glass and some type of jewelry lay scattered in one of the corners. Something wasn't right, this particular area was different than the rest. The only answer was that something was wrong with the land at this particular location. My right hand was covered in a dark aura, I closed my hand, raised my fist and...

BOOM!!!

Without hesitation I hit the ground below my feet, it was filled with cracks, pieces of dirt and stone flew into the air.

As the dust cloud began to disappear, I could see more clearly what was beneath the ground. A room appeared, it seemed to be the basement of the building. The floor ended up full of debris and dust. Some roots had destroyed the wall.

The cobwebs in the corners of the room, pieces of metal piled up in one of the corners with a lot of rust. It was not common metal, with the naked eye he could tell, a faint trace of mana could be felt. It is very likely that it was magic metal.

The basement was spacious and kept in better condition than the buildings or ruins of the surface. As I walked in circles, something caught my attention. An old statue of a strange creature with dozens of eyes surrounding its entire body, an imperfect body full of scars and roughly stitched. Her body was irregular, one of her arms was larger than the other, while her legs looked like those of a spider.

Seeing it gave me a strange feeling. I did not like his appearance at all and it is very likely that he was worse in flesh and life. The statue was covered in a thin layer of dust and cobwebs.

I opened my palm and a sphere of light began to float. It was a low-level spell, one of the easiest to learn while also being very useful.

On the wall behind the statue, a strange mural spread. It was carved into the bricks that made up the wall. In the center, a strange symbol surrounded by various rings or hoops. Around, strange deformed creatures, all maintaining a pose of reverence, raising their hands or kneeling in the ground.

Some sort of inscriptions were carved in one of the corners. A series of large obelisks stood out, they were at the back of the mural. Above the peak of the obelisks, strange spheres that seemed to emit light rose.

But the strangest thing was without a doubt what was near the floor. They were bodies, there were dozens of bodies in the painting, forming a field of death. The blood was filtered creating rivers.

They seemed to be human bodies, however, some of those bodies were strange, they had wings on their backs. angels? It was the first thing I thought when I saw them. could be... 

According to the stories the church tells. Angels are beings that live under the mantle of the gods, they are, so to speak, "divine" beings, part of the army of the gods. Their stories are numerous, but they highlight their participation in the wars that were fought thousands of years ago. The war against the so-called "fallen".

Supposedly this war ended with the victory of the gods, but there are big gaps in the stories, one of them is that it is never narrated that they are the fallen. They are only considered enemies of the gods and humanity.

Furthermore, there are never or almost never stories about any defeat on the part of the gods.

Looking at the mural, I'm sure it's about some confrontation between some enemy side against the gods. But who were they?

During my time as an adventurer, I heard a few things about sects that secretly worship the so-called fallen, but they are also not the only ones. I don't think this place is related to those sects, it's too old.

I inspected the surroundings for a while. The idea crossed my mind to destroy this whole place and with a little luck I could find secret places. I left the place without making any further fuss.

The sky was dark and clear, you could see stars shining. A weak gust of wind hit my body, my clothes billowing in the night breeze. I jumped to the top of a large tree.

I sat down, I just wanted to relax and rest. The night was beautiful leaving aside the place where I am. I closed my eyes and leaned my back against the stem of the tree.

The song of the owls and the owls, the night began its reign. Far from where Cain was resting, a large dry tree fell to the ground, destroying itself in the process.

The crows that were nesting nearby flew away. The crows scandal did not go unnoticed. A large black bear that was sleeping nearby got up in a very bad mood when it noticed the scandal.

A loud roar came out of his mouth warning whoever it was that woke him up. Nothing or no one appeared. The bear soon fell asleep again. In another place, a series of shadows marched while carrying weapons or that was what could be seen in their silhouettes.

---

The shadows of the past march through history. Their footsteps echo wherever they pass while their presence commands respect and fear in their enemies.

The sound of their armor and their battle cries will never cease. No matter what happens, they will prevail over time as legends of their great actions.

---

"shit". It was just a nightmare. In the middle of the night, I woke up abruptly. My face was full of sweat, my breathing was irregular and my heart was very agitated.

Damn…that place again. The damn emptiness, the darkness what hides everything. I always appear looking into the damn dark abyss.

I cannot describe in words what he managed to see in the abyss. I'm not even able to see him for a long period of time, I'm only able to recognize his damn eyes. I feel like he's able to see right through me.

The dream vanished after waking up from the nightmare. It was not yet dawn, the night was silent. I climbed down from the tree where he had rested. I stretched my arms and feet.

"I should start with my plans for the future."

He had nothing to do in the dry forest. First let's go back to where the teleportation altar is located. My main idea is to build a temporary base near that place where I will be able to practice some things and not sleep in the middle of the forest.

A hovel cabin not would be bad. While I was inside the cocoon, my powers were not the only ones to grow, I gained some knowledge about magical technology, the bad thing is that they are fragmented.

I just hope it's not difficult to put the puzzle together. I got going. It didn't take me long to get out of the forest. The first rays of sun were filtering through the mountains, the day begins.

It will take me a little time to get to where the altar was located. First I have to find the river.