Taol's Compendium of Nent

Chapter 4: Clade Ruins - Part 1 (Flos)

The journey to the ruins was a long one – days had passed as we tried to reach the general area where the ruins lied in, with the two of us attempting to seek out a trail or any kind of clue which could hopefully lead us to the ruins itself. After all, there surely had to be some dilapidated road which could give us any kind of potential direction to work with. Sure, we had the map, but the directions to lead us there was not. Eventually, after much scouring in hopes of finding ANYTHING which could help us, we finally found a beaten up, half-buried stone trail – finally, something to work with!

However, it was also worth mentioning that it was hard to reliably follow it, because again, it was half-buried. Times where the path would just abruptly end would, in reality, continue elsewhere as the stones jut out from the soil. Of course, this proved to be more than just a hindrance, as we would spend hours seemingly following the trail only for us to realize that we have been walking in circles the whole time because we lost our sense of direction a long time ago – frustration grew into fury, and that was clear as day for my new friend.

Of course, I tried my hardest to help her relax and cool off as days turned into weeks. She sure did have a short temper…I think I actually saw that part of her personality coming. She LOOKED like she radiated anger – guess it makes sense for her to be a game hunter, huh?

Either way, after what felt like ages of endless searching, we finally found something better to work with – after being able to loosely map our weeks’ worth of journeying on the path in hopes of finding a clearer direction to follow, we were soon able to notice the once half-buried stone path being fully visible now. Talk about needing some good news…and it looks like Tirza is finally getting some excitement in her veins now, too.

We would now follow the fully visible path, and after hours of trekking, we would soon find ourselves staring at the ruins that stood before us – it looked to be a terribly demolished castle, with solitary walls standing in place, detached from most of the building. This place looks utterly destroyed beyond repair…what even happened here?

Surely it can’t be JUST the work of nature slowly reclaiming her lost land…there was definitely more than that. I guess we weren’t around to see it.

That being said, I highly suggested to my dark elf companion that we stay close, considering how we knew very little about our own environment – sure, I now possess a great library of knowledge involving the Spatium Plains thanks to my weeks’ worth of exploration alone prior to meeting Tirza, but this is completely different now…I was as blank as a book. It’s a good thing I documented everything here.

After witnessing much of the rubble and ruin that was scattered across the destroyed land, we soon found the ruins itself – it looked to be a mix between a fort and a cathedral…though everything was broken and ripped apart. Perhaps it was pillaged? Or maybe it was just abandoned? Little is known about this place…

Without much wait, we would approach the entrance of the ruin – maybe it was meant to be locked shut, but the lock which held the wooden doors together was broken open, with the lock hanging by the side of the left door while the doors themselves were slightly ajar. At least we didn’t have to break ourselves in – we weren’t exactly good at picking locks…or destroying them, for that matter.

We would quickly get ourselves into the ruins, and sure enough, we were met with a rather eerie and rather unclean sight – the whole area was covered with spider webs, as you would expect from an area that has fallen into disuse…by the looks of this particular area, this seemed to be the throne room, which was a little odd, considering how this was the first room of the ruins. However, this did leave me thinking about other possibilities.

Perhaps this was just a small part of what was supposed to be a much bigger castle, and that everything else around it has been destroyed to the point where very little has remained, which might explain the walls that are scattered around this place. Has this place really existed for that long? I myself can’t believe it for sure.

Of course, my rambunctious dark elf companion wasn’t one for silence and stealth – here she was, yelling her guts out and basically threatening seemingly no one to come out and square up against us. Us? She is certainly a fan of danger…it’s a shame that I am not, mainly because of the fact that I’m no fighter, merely an explorer. It’s a shame she doesn’t realize that, even despite my efforts to constantly remind her back when we first met at the forest.

Speaking of that, I think it would be wise to learn how to fight and defend myself…I don’t know when our paths will separate, but it would be for the best if I were to be taught on basic fighting techniques – sure, they won’t totally suffice given the sheer danger that this journey may pose, but it’s good to start somewhere.

But of course, I think that should come later. After her yelling was met with nothing but silence, she was reduced to irritable grumbling as we pressed on, swatting away a few cobwebs and spiders in the process.

When we approached the throne itself, which lied just close to the other end of the room, I found myself eyeing it carefully, looking at its faded splendor. I didn’t know why, but there was something about this throne which greatly bugged me. There was this…menacing aura to it…I myself didn’t know what to make of it. In hopes of finding answers, we moved on, with us leaving the throne room and entering one of the two doors behind the throne – this ultimately led us to some kind of prayer room which most cathedrals had.

However, the statue of the deity that was posed on the other end of the room didn’t look very much godly…if anything, it looked utterly demonic in appearance. The statue itself looked to be female in s*x, and her face was covered with faded makeup of white, red and yellow. Her eyes bulged out, revealing its faded red and green tint while she bore this cruel, ugly smile which revealed her countless fangs – she was barely wearing any clothes, actually. She only wore a tight cloth that was wrapped around her chest and her waist to cover her crotch.

The statue was built so that it looked like the demon was dancing maniacally, with the monstrous figure itself trapped in some kind of dancing position with one arm and leg up in the air while her other arm was in a resting position with her other leg on the ground.

There was something else, however. There was this horrid stench that lingered in the air…the stench of blood. Tirza seemed to have noticed too, considering how she recoiled at the scent. However, a scent like that meant danger was nearby…which may have gotten my dark elf companion somewhat excitable. She would end up dashing towards the demonic statue, with me running behind her at a reasonable pace. This hall was rather huge, actually…it was quite the run, but it wasn’t that big of a deal either way.

Once we found ourselves standing before the statue, the two of us would look up at it, gazing at its menacing, vicious smile that looked like it grew wider than before. Seeing it up close was enough to give me shivers, admittedly. After we had enough of staring up at the figure’s face, we would then shift our attention towards its feet, where the stench somehow grew even worse than before – whatever it is that we are approaching, chances are that we are inching closer and closer to the source of the smell.

It was from here where I noticed some kind of rock jutting out from the floor, just in front of the statue. With interest and curiosity grabbing me by the horns, I slowly crouched down with the intent on inspecting it further – the rock itself was carved with these strange-looking lines that curved around and across the rock, with all the lines meeting up towards a carved, circular hole that rested dead in the middle.

I squinted my eyes at it, cracking a frown as I let out a long, drawn out hum – this rock definitely had to mean something, and perhaps it had something to do with this statue.

Unsure on what to do next, I rested my hand on the rock, and all of a sudden, I was met with an intense, sharp pain as my head was suddenly overwhelmed by an indescribable pulsing – it was almost as if someone had impaled me straight through my skull, and while I desperately attempted to pull my hand away from the rock, I soon found out amidst the madness that I was unable to break myself free.

My memory is still foggy on what had happened at the ruins involving the stone, but with whatever I can recall, it felt like my own life was being siphoned as the rock began to vibrate in place aggressively – Tirza was quick to notice this, and she tried to pull me away, but to no avail. It was almost as if the rock had tied itself to my palm.

After what felt like ages of being stuck there as my sight grew blurry while my ears began ringing, the pulsing in my head finally abated, and I was suddenly forced back by the rock as my palm was effortlessly freed on its own. There I was on, the ground, basically seeing stars as I heard my heart rapidly beat against my chest while Tirza was staring over me with a rather concerned look on her face – when she momentarily shifted her attention away from me and towards the rock, she would let out a grimace before immediately returning to my side, with her managing to force me back up to his feet.

My state had somewhat improved, though whatever improvement which showed itself was immensely marginal at best. I slowly raised my affected palm to see what had happened, and I ended up looking at countless amounts of miniscule, yet clearly visible red dots that was scattered on every last inch of my palm – what did that stone do to me?

My thoughts were swiftly interrupted, however, when my companion tapped my shoulder and pointed towards the statue once my attention was focused on her, and later on, the deity – it looked like its makeup had been…partially restored. Its smile actually grew even wider than ever now, as if it was slowly being brought to life. Was this…some kind of occult sacrificial altar? Just what is this place? What was its backstory…?

She would also shift my attention towards the rock – one side of the rock was completely filled with blood now…my blood, anyway. It seemed like the other side of the rock was left completely untainted. While my mind was now corrupt with fear, it was also plagued by a great deal of curiosity.

Just what will happen if I fully soaked the statue? Would this be an offering of sorts to the deity? I was also quick to realize the intensely overpowering blood stench once my senses had gradually returned to me – so this was the source of that smell…

I glanced over to the dark elf, hoping to find any answer for this, but even she was silent – if anything, she had grown wary and very focused to everything around her. She was giving me a gaze, as if she were telling me to take the risk and see what happens, and honestly, I was on the same page as she was. She was on the ready, prepared to take on whatever danger was to come, and I was the one that had to finish this…so-called sacrifice.

Anything for the sake of exploration, right?

I would take a deep breath, clutching now-bloodied palm as I brought out my other hand towards the half-filled stone, and with that I rested my unblemished palm towards the stone, and just like that, I was bombarded by that same, near-unbearable pain once again – however, this time, it sounded like as if someone was speaking to me through my mind…it felt like my head was about to split in twain too as the voice spoke to me. There was this guttural tone to it, and it was almost as if it was mocking my own weakness as a standard human being – when I gathered the strength to look up, I noticed a paralyzing sight.

Here I was, staring eye-to-eye with the deity that was now staring down at me, the statue now fully restored now thanks to my blood sacrifice. It was emanating this dark, violent aura that reeked of black magic…the monster thanked me for my sacrifice, and in response, the creature asked just what am I seeking as a form of compensation for this rather painful ritual. Occult gods do act similar to normal gods, don’t they…but even then, despite the mental assault that I was receiving, I knew I had to word my wish carefully.

Tirza was there, witnessing the whole thing before her own eyes as she aimed her lance at the statue, waiting to see if it was about to get physical. Of course, through the voice that constantly rang deafeningly through my head, it assured me that it was not going to attack. It was hard to believe what the voice said, but I knew that it was best to remain quiet – all I had to do was to make a wish. Dangerous or not, this may be priceless for the journey ahead. This may well be a blessing or a curse…

The first thing came to my mind – I had wished for something that could help me defend myself in the heat of battle. I wished that I wasn’t such a weak human being.

And just like that, the voice laughed, agreed to my wish, and all of a sudden, I passed out from the torture – everything went black, and I never knew what happened after that.

When I finally woke up, it was already night time, and we were just outside the ruins – Tirza had set up camp; campfire, tent and all, after she brought me close to one of the stray walls just close to the entrance. When she noticed that I had awakened, she would quickly rush to me, a look of sheer concern on her face. When I asked what had happened, I was met with a barrage of information from the dark elf.

She had seen me pass out right before the statue, and after I had let go of the rock, the carvings were completely filled with my blood while the statue looked completely rejuvenated – however, the entire room began to quake immensely, as if the whole area was about to break apart and destroy itself apart. Without much hesitation, she had gotten me out amidst the chaos and rushed out to the throne room.

While she was at it, the door behind her which led to the sacrificial altar was slammed shut and the sound of crashing rocks and stone could be heard behind the door before silence ensued. She would swiftly get us out of the ruins, setting me against one of the walls while she returned to the ruins to check on what had happened. When she tried to open the door, it just wouldn’t open, as if something had sealed the door shut.

That was all she ever told me about what had happened after I had made my wish to the deity – my headache still lingered, but it was nowhere as bad as it was before. She was also quick to mention something else about me that she had noticed – that was when she pointed towards my hands with a hint of slight intrigue on her face. When I raised my hands to see them, I saw that they had turned completely black, and that this darkness had spread all the way towards my wrists, where the blackness had gradually faded back into my light skin.

Was this a sign of my wish which I had made to the deity? Just what did it do to me? I wish I had answers, but they never said anything about what it would do to me in order to fulfill what I had wished for. I guess I’ll have to find out.

Tirza suggested that we rest for the night, and that we can continue exploring what’s left of the ruins tomorrow before we take our leave – this was definitely a great idea, considering just what we have been through the whole day. Of course, considering how this was not an ideal place for hunting to flourish, I had to provide our dinner via my rations before going off to sleep for the night. While I insisted that I sleep alone again, this time she demanded that I sleep in her tent, and this was only because she was insanely skeptical from what happened back at the altar – she must be paranoid, perhaps, over the fact that I could be overcome with danger during the middle of the night.

How nice of her to think of that, actually.

Knowing that I have no way to deny her reasoning, I reluctantly accepted, and in the end, we slept together for the first time in her tent. Not that it was something worth mentioning, but hey, here we are.

While I slept, I kept hearing voices in my head…and every time when I woke up, wondering just where the voices were coming from, I was met with nothing but silence in the environment around me – this must be the effect made from my blackened hands…I don’t know what this darkness does, and I don’t know what it will do to me, but I don’t think there is anything I can do about it. The best I CAN do is just progress and see how it goes.

Apart from the occasional disturbances caused by the voices, nothing else had occurred, much to the relief of both me and my companion. When we woke up the next morning and packed our things, we knew we had to just explore what was left of the ruins as quickly as possible and get out of here before anything bad and grim happens to either of us again.

And that was exactly what we did.

Once we were raring and ready to go, we quickly went back to the throne room of the ruins and went to the other room that was available once – my eyes momentarily shifted to the now-inaccessible altar of these hallowed grounds, and I swear, just for a split second, I felt a swift, sharp sting on my hands which made me flinch. I bit my lip, clenching my hands before taking a deep breath and moving on. Now to see what this room awaited us…

As soon as I opened the door, I could hear the sound of whispers coming from the other side, as if they were warning me about the dangers ahead – while I met this with a great deal of concern, Tirza met this with a great deal of anticipation…because of course she did. I closed my eyes, attempting to prepare myself for what was to come before opening them again and pushing the door open…

We were met with a black abyss, nothing but darkness swarming the room as not even a single ray of light could be found within. Whatever light which came from outside the room didn’t even have the courage to enter it, as if some supernatural force was forcing all light, both internal and external, out of this very room. The whispers grew louder, so much that they became almost murmurs to some extent.

Tirza had no idea what the voices were saying, judging by the slight look of confusion in her eyes amidst her attitude of growing excitement, but I could understand them clearly – was this because of yesterday? Perhaps this room may hold some answers to what I have been afflicted with. Maybe.

As soon as I stepped into the room, a huge gust of wind forced the two of us into the room before the door was slammed and sealed shut before us, drowning us into the darkness within – it was from here where a cacophony of voices began speaking together in unison in almost a deafening manner, so much that it made Tirza close her ears after being taken completely by surprise at how loud the noise was. However, I seem to be completely unaffected by the voices, and soon enough, I could hear the mad symphony of voices speak to us, and it was clear that they were angered by our presence here.

They spoke about how we have sealed our fate by ending up here, and more importantly, they seem to have taken a particular interest in me as they spoke about how I have been ‘tainted’ by the deity’s blessing – perhaps they are not fond of whatever lived in that altar. Then came the dealbreaker which set us off.

They intended to finish us off right here, right now.