Man of War

Chapter 265 Where It All Began

Perspective: Miles

I give a long sigh as I watch from the crew cabin while our aircraft drops out of cloud cover. We descend into the deserts of the Minotaur lands in a wide formation as we race over the sand dunes below. We received readings of massive amounts of magical energy being released out here. More than what we believe what the minotaurs are capable of. We're expecting the Unfamiliar are behind it, so I have the Fourth bot legion with me as well as most of my Spartans.

We haven't had any magical signatures appear on our approach as of yet, so I'm starting to think that it might be something... else. I even had the autopilots take us for a loop around to try and get a better read on the area, but there's nothing down there. No people, no machines, not even an enchanted item of any sort! Nothing that our scanners can detect at least. As far as we're aware, there's literally nothing but sand and rocks.

The bot piloting looks back to me for an order. I stare out at the vast expanse of emptiness before nodding to the machine. No sense in waiting any longer. It's time to go down there and take a look for ourselves.

I grab to the overhead rail as we tip down and begin our descent. Behind us the dozens of other aircraft follow suit as we break out of the massive single cloud the desert was able to muster. I look back to Storm Cloud and nod to him, getting one in return. He starts shouting orders to the others and they begin to prepare to dismount. I leave it to him and look back out to the desert.

Something is wrong here. Or, maybe not wrong. Something is different here. But we're not going to learn anything from up here.

As we circle around for our descent the sands below begin to get blown from our jets. This causes some of the sand to shift and reveal a hole in the ground. I point it out to the pilot and we race towards it. All of our craft form a circle around the opening and the door slide open. I wait a moment as everyone else rushes out of the vehicle. I can already feel the heat coming in. Our metal armor isn't going to be helpful today. We'll need to be quick while under the sun.

I step out into the light and slide my helmet on. It'll help with the blinding light, but I can tell it'll cook my head if I'm not careful. We have the opening surrounded. Every gun is set on it, ready for whatever may come out. I walk straight towards it and squat down near the edge. All I can see inside is a massive dark cavern with a few streaks of light revealing the remains of an ancient city beneath the sands.

"Terradisian?" Storm asks as he walks up beside me. I shake my head slowly as I stare down into the city.

"Our helmets have Smartlinks. If it was Terradisian, we'd see something down there. A sign, advertisement, some sort of signal... something." I tell him as I stand.

"Maybe. Or maybe the power has been gone for so long there'd be nothing to see. Not to mention this place is so deteriorated I doubt anything would be functional." I hum in response. He's not wrong. But there's something nagging at the back of my head telling me this isn't Terradisian. This is something different.

I send the Jumpers ahead to do a loop of recon while I magically widen the opening so the rest of our craft can enter. It doesn't take long for us to all get in and we begin the process of investigating the area. Bots do the bulk of the work. Flying from building to building scanning every crevice as we head to points of interest. Sadly, there doesn't seem to be much down here.

Whatever this city was, I get the impression that it was human. But clearly it was from a very long time ago. Tall skyscrapers have turned to stone somehow. Their windows have long since been blown out, leaving the nearly hollowed out buildings exposed. Some have fallen over, leaving large mounds in the roads. But there are a few that are leaning against other buildings or the walls of the cavern. I reminds me of Topaz Falls, but there's just something off about it that makes it feel distinctly non-Terradisian.

We pass a building and I get a good look inside. Whatever was inside these buildings has long since eroded under the heat of the desert. There must have been something above the city that turned with it that would have made the dome above. Maybe a system of panels that would have covered then city from the sun? But then what would have destroyed everything down here?

I walk through the rows of hollowed out buildings and take a moment to look over the structures some more. It's definitely not Terradisian. At least, not like any I've ever seen before. Judging by the relatively similar levels of degradation I think it's safe to assume whatever happened here, happened all at once.

An entire city turned to stone all at once. There's only one weapon I can think of that could have done that. A super archaic bomb. Maybe a primitive one, or one that was actually set to turn an entire city to stone. Either way, it's the only thing I can think of that would be able to do this. But why here? What was so important or threating about this location to garner that kind of response? And am I even going to be able to get to an answer for that? By the looks of it, not likely.

We continue our search of the ruins but are quickly getting nowhere. There's simply nothing here to find. No signs of battle. No bones. Nothing to indicate that anything has happened here for thousands of years. But, just we were all about to give up, the evidence appeared right before our faces.

We turned a corner of one building and found the remains of a massive battle. Entire chunks of the old skyscrapers are missing! With clean, clearly new lines having been erased from several buoldings. The destruction shows the trail of the fight, seemingly ending or starting at this point. Some buildings have fallen over from the sudden destruction, still leaving a massive cloud of dust in the air.

But most striking of all, is the massive ball of dark energy floating in the middle of the intersection before us. It has to be fifteen meter wide and about twenty meters in the air. It seems to draw all of us to it as once. From every street and corridor my bots and Spartans begin to walk out towards the massive ball of energy. Every eye trained upon the sphere.

It feels somewhat familiar. Like a cold breeze on a hot day racing across your back. Chilling, but refreshing as well. I begin to reach out to it as if I was reaching towards a familiar friend.

"WAAAAIT!" I jump a little from the new voice yelling out. Everyone turns to the golden-beige pegasi with black and white gradient hair climbing out of a nearby window. She's wearing a pith helmet and a canvas shirt that's ashy from all the dirt and grime of the area.

She struggles to climb out of the window for a moment before falling flat on her face. Before I could even register what was happening she jumps back up and starts to fly towards us. "Don't touch the sphere! Don't even look at it!"

"*INWARD GASP!*" Rainbow nearly falls out the air before rushing to take her helmet off, finding it more difficult than usual.

"The fuck is going on!?" I yell as I start to get a hold of myself. I look to the nearest bot and point a finger at it, getting its attention. "How many fucking sensors do you fuckers have and you couldn't even find one pegasi!?"

"Are you how I think you are!?" Rainbow asks as she rushes to the strangers side, hopping like an excited child.

"Step back from the orb!" She yells at me, pushing me back. "Don't look at it! Just get away!"

"Okay-okay-okay!" I yell as I stumble back and turn around. "Who the fuck are you and what the is that thing?"

"You have to get out of here before it shifts again!" She yells, ignoring my question. I look around for some sort of answer before the orb starts to make a vibrating sound. We all stop and look up at the massive ball of energy as it starts to pulsate aggressively.

"DROP LIKE A ROCK!" I yell before throwing myself to the ground. The massive orb shakes in place as it starts to lose its form. It shrinks and ungulates as it starts to waver back and forth. Everyone who doesn't drop to the ground makes a run for it as the bots turn and race away from the unstable mass of energy. Dark pulses emanate from the unstable mass and saturates the area. I can feel it resonate in me, pulling something out from deep within.

I feel my back arch as the energy pulses throughout me. I try to yell out, but I can't manage anything. All I can do is flip myself over and groan out as the energy forces its way into my body. I look to my right and see Storm on the ground as well. He got a bit farther away, so it doesn't seem like it's effecting him as much. He can at least manage a slow crawl away from the mass, so it must be proximity based. If that's the case, then I have a chance to get away.

I grit my teeth is I focus everything I have into getting control of my arms. They don't want to cooperate though. It's like I'm being electrocuted and my muscles are contorting from it. So I lessen my focus. Not my entire arms, just down to my elbows. Can I get them up at all? If I can just start pushing myself away I can get more control. Take it every millimeter you can get.

Just as I start to feel like I'm making any progress a massive wave of energy over takes me. I look up just in time to see the black mass begin to violently spike and shutter before exploding out from the unstable energy. Even if I could react it would have washed over me too quickly to escape it. Everything goes dark as I become engulfed in the expanding mass. The pain washes away near instantly and I'm left with a cold chill that pierces down to the bone.

I try to open my eyes, but I can't see anything. I reach up and feel at my face. I had a helmet on, but it seems to have partially melted away. Most of my face is exposed, and I can feel a light fog of some sort emanating from myself. I try to swat it away, but it won't stop.

I suddenly realize that I'm laying in a body of water. Icy water. When I sit up the water rolling off of me echoes as if it will sounds off forever. I feel the fog leave my face and I can finally get a look around. I'm in some sort of cavern. The walls of jagged rock seemingly go up forever. They're made of some sort of black material that has a sheen that gives off purples or greens.

Floating in the air are... anomalies. They give off rays of light and fluctuate from various shapes within shapes. A cube in a circle that ebbs into a star that shrink out existence only to pop back as a long box. When two collide they meld into a single mass. Some continue on as a single new object while over burst slowly out into various new masses.

Countless anomalies float and weave though the dark cavern. All of which seem to have rays of light trying to shine through them. Any of the lights that can burst through are quickly snuffed out, leaving the cavern mostly dark. I can't tell how far this pit goes, but I get the impression that I could be down here for a long time.

"So you finally made it."

I jump from the ethereal voice. I tried to get to my feet, but the gravity in this place is off. I end up getting a bit of air and nearly float away. Some unseen force gently guides me back to the ground. I look to the figure before me and feel a pang of fear wash over me.

It stands at least three meters tall. It appears to be a being of pure light, cloaked in shadows that help define its outline. It seems to be wearing a cloak made of feathers that covers it form from neck to toes and hovers about half a meter off the ground. Its head lacks any major features. There are divots where the mouth and eyes should be. Only showing because of the shadowy outline. But they're upside down. The eyes are at the bottom while the mouth is at the top of the head.

"Do not be afraid. I am here to help." I try to relax, but something about this being makes it impossible. "I am without name, but there are those that call me Finis Nihilo."

"The End of Nothing?" I mutter out. The being gives a slight nod. I go to ask it something but it raises a finger and silences me.

"I am here to help, but I can only help so much. Mortal time is finite after all. You may ask two questions. And when we meet again, I shall grant you an additional question. Until you ask the right question that is."

I immensely want to ask what that means, but the being raises a finger to me. I try to get a chance at its body, but it's hard to make anything out. I do get the impression that it has several wings covering its body though.

It doesn't want me to waste questions. So I need to be strategic with what I ask. Two questions. Two questions...

"Okay, so... what do you know?" This seems like a good question to start with. No point in asking about anything if it doesn't know what I'm talking about

"I know enough to know I know nothing at all." It sounds as if it's making a joke, but I don't think I'm in the loop for its humor. "But that is not what you meant. So let me answer like this. I can answer whatever it is you need to know. If I am unable to answer, then you have asked the right question."

I guess that's something to go off of. What would the right question be then? What I really want to ask is what this place is or how I got here. But there are probably more important questions to ask.

I could ask where Death is. Or where the Darkness is hiding. That's most likely not what I need to ask, but it could stop a war from happening too. Maybe that is what I'm supposed to say then. But that could be short sighted.

How am I supposed to know what to ask about with no clues to unravel? It did mention asking additional questions if I return though. Maybe it knows I'll come back one day. But if I don't know where this is how am I going to do that?

So maybe that's the best question. Where is this place? Or how do I get here?

I take another look around and try to commit this place to memory. The anomalies seem to be calming down now. They aren't undulating as aggressively as they were earlier. My arrival might have had something to do with that. But beyond that nothing really stands out to me. There's really nothing here...

"What is this place?" Finis Nihilo stays silent for a moment. I even feel as if I asked the right question for a moment. But then it turns to the side and sighs sadly. That may have a waste of a question it seems.

"Before there was light, there was nothing. And it was good. But then the world was split in two; between light and dark. The light grew and grew creating all that ever was... and all that ever will. But the split caused a tear between the light and dark. We are in the wound of that split. Neither existing nor fading. This is where it all began.

Be wary on your travels, Miles (me-less) Eremita. For you are walking a lonely path. And a dangerous path to be sure."

The being turns back to me and for a moment I feel... safe. It's a familiar feeling, but I can't quite place it at this moment. But everything goes numb when it unfurls three sets of wings; each of which opens hundreds of eyes to look down at me.

"And do try to be on time for tea. You know how much he hates waiting."

Before I could even register the question all of the eyes on its wings begin to glow and I have to shield myself from the bright light. The light bears down on me and I feel myself stumble back from the pressure of it all. It's as if a thousand hands were gently laid upon me and forced me down to the ground. I curl into a ball and hold onto my head and try to cover myself from the light, but it's no use. It bores through me and shines down to my very soul. All thought leaves me and I can feel myself tighten up as I wait for it to end.

Holding my breath...

Waiting...

And then something cool touches at me feet.

It's relaxing. Soothing even. Whatever footwear I was wearing is gone, letting me toes dip into the cold waves below.

I lower a hand and feel the ground beneath me. I'm on a shore somewhere. I can feel the cold ground and wet grass beneath my fingers. And it almost brings me to tears. I take a deep breath in and hear what remains of my armor clang around me. I turn onto my back and sigh in relief as the waters around me gently rush past. I'm at the edge of a river, judging be the earthy-mossy smell in the air.

I try to open my eyes but wince from the light. They haven't adjusted to the light yet, but with every blink I can start to piece my location together.

I'm on a small island in the middle of a river. The banks aren't too far away and the waters seem to be washing against various standing stones...

With another blink I begin to notice that the stones are moving. Ever so slightly. As if they're staring back at me. Waiting to see what I'll do next.

I blink again and here a familiar beeping-clicking sound. It's a bot communication with another bot wirelessly. But that doesn't make sense. The only bots near a river are the ones at Mooseden.

One last blink and I lose my breath again. The stones aren't stones at all. They're Unfamiliar. And there are what looks like hundreds of them staring back at me. We stare at each other for a moment before I gasp for air and scramble backwards. They gasp in response and begin to murmur to one another. Slowly stepping towards me. Their murmurs beginning to become a chant.

I stumble into a tree and use it to stand. Finally I see how many there truly are. They are thousands. They're in the tree line. In the water. Behind me! In front of me! They're everywhere!

I raise a hand and go to ignite it with my magic, but something goes wrong. My magic doesn't come out. But rather the dark energy of Icy Void emanating from my palms. I've never had it come out like that before. Usually I'd have to ball my fist up.

I look out to the crowd of Unfamiliar as they all kneel before me. Their chants growing stronger in unison.

"Nether Wielder. Nether Wielder! NETHER WIELDER!"