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60 - The Ruined City
🕑 Added 2023-03-18 00:52:05 +0000 UTCIt took me almost three days due to the fact that I was taking my time, frequently stopping to observe fights, but I was finally in the shadow of the next floating island. I’d hidden in some shrubs while I was waiting for my mana reserves to top themselves up and going through my status once again. I managed to take out a good number of monsters during the journey, mostly the ones that won the fights I’d been watching. They were hurt and confident after winning, which made them easy pickings.
I leveled up twice, reaching level fifteen, and put my two attribute points into wisdom, as always. My inventory also contained my bounty, but I was holding out on eating the spoils until I was on the island where there would be some guaranteed safe spots.
I glanced back up at the island, which seemed to be at least three times as big as the other islands I’d been to so far. Truly, a floating behemoth. Due to the bigger size, it was also higher off the ground, which means I would probably burn through my entire void mana just to get up there. Thankfully, I’d only been using void cloak in order to get around and fought using my poison spells, so I didn’t have to wait too long until my reserves were filled once again.
Eventually, the time came and I started charging a void jump, pumping it full with mana until I bottomed out. It was really hard to gouge the required mana for this distance, and all I could do was hope that it was enough. Worst case scenario I’d glide back down and get my wisdom up until it was enough.
I jumped through the void portal and emerged high up in the sky, immediately deploying my wings. Thankfully I made it high enough, albeit barely. I was maybe a hundred meters above the edge of the island and slowly glided down while staring at the island's content in wonder.
An entire city was sprawling across the surface but not the rustic kind like the houses I’d seen so far. It looked just like a city straight from Earth. Houses made out of concrete, skyscrapers towering above other tall buildings, streets snaking throughout the city, and nary any green in sight. If it wasn’t for the fact that I was still a monster and on another planet, I would assume this was taken straight from my home.
Well, the fact that large swathes of the city lay in ruins was a dead giveaway, but it was still remarkably similar to what I was used to.
I took a few moments to drink in the view, and a wave of nostalgia came over me, even though it hadn’t even been a year since I left. There were some large buildings that most likely were used for housing near me, in a state of disrepair that looked all too familiar. It honestly reminded me of my shitty little apartment where I was killed.
I looked at the city again, wondering just where the hell the mural would be in this sprawling city. If it wasn’t in some sort of special building and instead in a tucked away apartment… I’d be screwed. I carefully started down the street in front of me, idly noticing that it had a boardwalk and faded markings on the street, implying that some sort of vehicle had been in use here.
I stopped every once in a while to scout for nearby monsters. There were probably none since the system kept monsters away from places like this, but it wouldn’t hurt to be careful. I couldn’t stop myself from noticing just how familiar, yet oddly different, everything looked. The most glaring difference was the sizes. This city hadn’t been built for humanoids, that much was clear. I still clearly remembered just how large the transformed people were, with some of them easily clearing three meters, and the construction of the buildings reflected that.
While I traveled through the deserted streets, I kept an eye out for any buildings that stood out, but the only ones that looked any different from the rest were the ones that had completely collapsed. The city in general looked like it was ravished by a full-blown war. Collapsed buildings, craters in the streets, rubble, and broken windows everywhere.
After a while of wandering aimlessly, I decided that a change of plan was in order. I changed direction toward the highest skyscraper I could see, intent on climbing to the top to get a better view. Throughout my journey, I didn’t encounter a single monster, the deserted city and the resulting lonely feeling sent shivers up my spine. Something about a completely abandoned place like this just didn’t sit right with me.
I passed by what looked like storefronts, just as destroyed and abandoned as the rest of the city. Empty shelves lined the inside, the products that were on display once upon a time long since rotten away. I passed by what looked like a playground, the equipment looking similar to the ones I knew, yet adjusted to the odd forms the natives took after the event. Schools, offices, a hospital, and restaurants. I could barely recognize all of them for what they were, driving home just how similar this civilization had lived to ours.
Eventually, I arrived at the skyscraper I was going for. It seemed structurally sound… mostly, so I went right through the broken entryway, looking for a place to ascend. I half expected to find a set of elevators, but there was nothing of the sort to be found. Instead, there were these alcoves that had some sort of magic circles chiseled into the ground. Teleport magic, maybe?
The magic formations looked broken, and even if they weren’t I wasn’t about to mess around with teleportation magic I didn’t know. Void jump wasn’t viable either since I was still recovering my reserves, so good old stairs it was. I eventually found the stairwell, hidden behind a collapsed wall, and started on my journey up the steps that were higher than I was tall.
Up and up I went, occasionally having to find my way through an obstruction, and after what felt like an eternity, I came out on top. There was quite a bit of wind this high up, and I had to take care to not get blown away, but I went to the edge of the roof and took a look at the city, this time from above.
Now that I could see a large portion of the city, I could really see just how extensive the damage was. There was an entire section of the city that was nothing but rubble, potentially due to a devastating explosion. Many buildings laid in ruins, and even more were broken to some extent. I tried to make out any buildings that stood out, and there were indeed a few that were… oddly shaped, but I wasn’t certain whether they were what I was looking for.
I took my time peering over the city from all four sides of the roof, looking for a hint as to where I might find the mural of this island, and after my second time checking everything I finally caught a glimpse of something. A faint blue light could be seen from the window of a building about one kilometer away. I had to really focus on it to even notice the faint shimmer in the air, but if I had to guess, this was probably it.
Not having any better options, I jumped off the roof and started gliding toward the building, fighting the strong winds all the way down. I couldn’t quite make it all the way there, but I continued my journey over the rooftops while trying to keep the building within sight. I almost felt like a certain friendly neighborhood spider, minus the web shooters, of course.
The building I arrived at, was a three-storied one, stretching to both sides quite far. Like the rest of the city, it was in disrepair and some of the walls had collapsed. Unlike everything else, nature had started to reclaim this one. Vines were snaking their way up the intact walls, moss was growing in patches, and where the floor was broken, the grass was sprouting. I guess that’s as good a confirmation that I was at the right place as I could hope for.
I quickly went inside, a large hall awaiting me behind the open doors. I took a quick look around before noticing the mural I was looking for, painted on the roof, for some reason.
The city was featured prominently, almost taking up the entire surface. But there were also the figures of the now familiar monstrous-looking people from the first memory I’d seen. They were depicted going about their business, shopping, eating, playing, and generally being happy. It all took a turn in the other half of the painting where the city was going up in flames, and they were attacked by… themselves? Did they have a civil war or something?
I didn’t have to wonder for too long, since the system once again piped up to provide me with the answers.
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Congratulations!
You have discovered a trace of an ancient civilization! (3/3)
You have completed a bonus objective!
The reward for completing this objective will be paid out during evolution.
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