“Peter, what are you—”
Wrrr.
I wasn’t sure who started the question, but all three of us went silent as the structure vibrated.
It was calling to us, drawing us closer. I didn’t know why, but sothing deep inside told it was safe. My body moved on its own, without thought.
The others did the sa.
Be careful, Peter, Wyrem warned. Stay focused!
His voice cut through the hypnotic pull. Shaking off the fog, I lunged toward Elric and Drake, grabbing them both and giving them a hard shake. “Hey!”
They blinked several tis, regaining awareness.
“Whoa,” Drake exhaled, rubbing his head. “What the heck is this thing?”
“Reminds of that green pool,” Elric said thoughtfully.
“Maybe we should start using Sensory Veil more often while we explore,” I suggested.
Elric sighed, shaking his head. “Exploration wouldn’t last long at that energy cost.”
Still… I couldn’t say for sure, but it felt like I was starting to develop an instinct for danger. Or maybe I was imagining it. Either way, this structure didn’t feel wrong.
Wyrem, do you know anything about it? I asked, catching the familiarity in his tone earlier.
I’ve seen sothing like this once before, but not exactly like this, he replied. When I was trapped inside that vial. A man stronger than the one who imprisoned had one.
It gathered energy?
That’s why I warned you to hide that ability of yours, Wyrem said. His voice carried sothing like unease. I couldn’t quite place it though. Ask the questions, Peter. The temptation for treasures like this... the price may be too high.
I listened to him and asked what he recomnded aloud.
“Cultivation like ours? No,” Drake answered, shaking his head. “I’m certain of that. Maybe so foundations, but the Royal Trials limit us too much. We’ve never been able to pull much from it… at least from what I know.”
“It’s possible so could see like us,” Elric added. “But they’d likely be specialized classes, probably not combat-oriented. No one they would’ve sent here.”
“So... we should be safe, right?” I asked, double-checking.
“No one’s been here for a long ti, I think,” Drake replied.
Then sothing caught my eye . A shimr across the pillar’s surface, gleaming in a way that didn’t seem natural. “I’m gonna touch it.”
“WHAT?!” they both shouted in unison.
“That thing nearly forced us to approach it,” Elric said. “It can’t be good, man.”
Does it show up in your domain? Wyrem asked.
No.
As long as nothing alive is inside, it should be safe.
I wasn’t about to take his words as absolute, so I added, “You felt it too, right? No threat.”
“Yes. Because everything that wants to hurt you always announces itself,” Drake muttered, massaging his temples.
That… was a fair point.
“So we just ignore it?” I asked.
Drake paused, uncertainty flashing across his face. “I don’t know.” He glanced at . “I’ll touch it first. Just pull away if sothing happens.”
“You’re sure?” Elric asked, brows raised.
Drake nodded, already stepping forward. Just before his hand t the surface, he handed Elric a rectangular object. “Use this with your system if anything happens. It’ll return you and anyone nearby to Griffith.”
“Got it.”
Drake extended his hand and pressed it against the polished surface. Imdiately, his body shuddered once. His eyes glazed over and he stood frozen.
“Drake?” I called.
Slowly, he turned, an eerie smile creeping across his face. Then, with unnatural booming reverence, he spoke. “I AM THE GREAT TERROR OF THE SHATTERED—”
My stomach dropped. I had been wrong. Sothing had happened, sothing bad, and it was my fault.
“—OW! Dammit, Elric, what was that for?!”
“For being a moron,” Elric snapped, shaking out his hand after smacking his older brother across the head.
“I was just having a little fun,” Drake muttered. “Go ahead. Nothing unsafe about it. Just be ready.”
I hated their family. So, sooo much. “I hope Lyra fixes you two,” I said, already reaching my hand toward the pillar.
The instant my fingers touched the surface, the world shifted. My vision blurred, a sensation I was unfortunately becoming far too familiar with, before everything snapped back into sharp clarity.
A voice rang out, the very sa grandiose tone Drake had mimicked earlier. It sounded almost like a sales pitch.
“Welco to the Great Bridge of Caedia, the greatest hub of practical knowledge and culture!”
The narration continued without pause, my mind swept along as though carried across a living map. A vast, intricately connected landscape unfolded before .
This wasn’t the Shattered Expanse. At least, not any part of it I recognized. But the pillar itself stood unmistakably at the center of it all as the vision zood inward.
“Visit the great Veins of the Dragon. Their cores, harvested by our own leader. The shells refined by the greatest craftsman ever to call our world ho!”
Around the pillar was a massive stage. Dozens of people moved in synchronized battles, wielding golden weapons and launching spells that lit up the air with bursts of brilliant energy.
The surface of the arena tiled with the sa pearlescent material as the pillar, each square glistening under the gathered power.
“If you work hard enough, you may even gain access to our Grand Library… though I can’t show that. She’ll get mad.”
The scene shifted again, this ti revealing a beautifully intricate structure like a palace, yet surprisingly modest in size. Not towering, but elegant. At most, the equivalent of a well-furnished four or five-bedroom ho.
“Our fearless leader’s ho,” the voice announced. “As dangerous as she is beautiful. Energetic, kind, a friend to everyone and anyone. The most charming woman in existence.”
Good grief. This guy sounded utterly smitten.
He continued his monologue, voice filled with almost embarrassing admiration. “Train hard, win tournants, and prove yourself. Perhaps she’ll even take you in as a personal student. And now, let’s hear a few words from her.”
“What?” a flustered, distinctly feminine voice cut in. “Right now? Geez, fine.”
My chest tightened. I knew that voice.
The vision zood into the house, focusing on her directly.
“I guess you’re going to see this at the first vein,” she said, her tone warm but nervous. “Let’s seeeee… Welco, and I hope you’re ready to learn. Train hard, and the rewards will flow. I made this place so we could all help each other now that the world has changed. Have hope, there is a way forward, despite everything that’s happened.”
Her eyes sparkled like living gemstones, reflecting shifting bands of light. Her skin, as pure as I rembered, shimred softly under the glow.
“Maybe we will lose more,” she added quietly, “but together, we can preserve sothing for the future.”
I had never seen her this clearly before. Her silver hair hung loosely over her shoulders, making her appear youthful rather than aged. She wore the sa clothing I rembered, layers of silk, but now, up close, it was less regal and more… disheveled.
The layers were hemd unevenly, giving her the look of soone who wanted to seem mystical and ghostly, but when standing still, it just looked a bit silly.
Maybe she liked looking cool. Judging by the embarrassed pout creeping onto her face, I was starting to believe that theory.
“Next ti tell when you’re doing this,” she muttered, clearly flustered. “This is just the first recording, right? A test?”
Suddenly, the vision jerked upward, lifting us into the air almost instantaneously.
“So that’s it!” the narrator chid. “Make sure to co. She can be strict, but—”
“HEY!” the woman shouted, her voice rising in exasperation. “I told you not to do that when I’m not ready!”
She sounded flustered, almost shy beneath the frustration.
“Gotta go,” the narrator whispered, lowering his voice conspiratorially. “Don’t tell her this is what you see. She’ll make sleep outside.”
The vision abruptly went black. But even as the image faded, the sounds lingered. I heard frantic pleas for forgiveness, hurried promises that he wouldn’t use the recording again, and what could only be described as repeated impacts, sothing solid and fleshy slamming against stone.
Oh… she likes him too.
A fuzzy sensation washed over as my awareness returned, and in an instant, I stood once more before the Dragon Vein.
“Cute, right?” Drake said, chuckling. “And it’s good news.”
Elric, already recovered, added, “There might be sothing left here, but surviving whatever destroyed this landmass? That’s unlikely at best.”
“Exactly,” Drake agreed, his tone light but tinged with excitent. “And I can’t think of many reasons the State or Voxter would risk coming all this way for what might be useless knowledge.”
“So... we’re safe?” I asked, feeling a wave of relief.
“Well, no,” Drake admitted, “but at least the risk of being pursued because of this is low.”
“I think we should camp here,” I said, voicing the thought that had been building in my mind. “If we cultivate here, I think our progress will be incredible.”
“Let’s discuss it with the others first,” Drake advised. “It’s still dayti. Most predators aren’t morning types, so who knows how safe the area is.”
“I agree,” Elric said with a nod.
Without wasting ti, we started heading back at high speed.
“So... how do you think this place was destroyed?” I asked, still puzzled. “This doesn’t exactly scream natural disaster to .”
Not unless we’re talking billions of years.
“Who knows,” Elric replied, leaping over a fallen tree. “That kind of power... Like I said, who knows.”
As we arrived back at camp, I froze at the sight. “Is that a moat?”
A wide trench circled a large wall of dirt, rock, and gravel, clearly under construction.
“Griffith’s got to get the material from sowhere,” Drake said with a laugh. “Looks like your dirt-castle’s already coming together nicely.”
“Not exactly visually appealing… fits you perfectly, man,” Elric added with a grin.
“HEY?!” I shot back, indignant. “Wait… My castle?”
“Peter?” Thea’s voice called from within the fortified circle. “Co in already!”
“Such a demanding girl,” Elric remarked.
“You too, Elric!” Sia yelled from inside.
We both sighed and jumped over the wall together.
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