Legends of the Stars

Chapter 11: Edge of the World

Chapter 11

Edge of the World

July 17th, 2019 AE, 3:46 PM

For hours, the Champions traveled around the outer edge of the primordial Wasteland. Jaden could sense hordes of demons crawling within the caves and cliffs of this forbidden realm. The bones of their victims were scattered across the cliffs, with some as big as a whale. None of them wanted to find out what kind of monstrosities consumed such a creature.

They continued traversing the cliffs until they were behind the face of Mount Sarum. Few demons crawled upon this trail, but they were careful to stay out of sight. The path bordered on the edge of a large, misty chasm that was seemingly bottomless. This was the Ancient Abyss, the crevice formed by Zadon when he began his invasion of Aeos. It was also the final battlefield in the Divine War centuries ago. There were still swords and various other rusty weapons sticking out from the dead earth, now tomb markers for the fallen warriors. Beyond this abyss was the frozen tundra of Novarelm. The Champions had reached the end of Astrelm, but it seemed like they were at the edge of the world.

They eventually came across a large, rickety bridge that stretched across a gap in the trail. Judging from the worn-out wood, they could tell that this bridge was old and ready to collapse. They all walked slowly and carefully, tightly gripping the rope on both sides of the bridge. Jaden tried not to look down into the abyss, but he was drawn in by the large and powerful demons lurking below. His senses made out the shapes of enormous, eel-like creatures slithering down there. He could only see the darkness shifting around like the waters in an infernal ocean.

Suddenly, Jaden heard the sound of one of the wooden boards breaking. He turned around to see Astra had stepped through one of them and had nearly fallen through. Luckily for her, Jesse had grabbed onto her upper arm, preventing her from falling completely. They all fearfully held their breaths when they saw what nearly happened. Seeing that Astra was safe, everyone exhaled and recovered themselves from the peril that was narrowly avoided.

"Oh God," he softly exclaimed, both relieved and annoyed.

Jesse pulled Astra back up, and she regained her footing.

"Thank you, Jesse," she said.

"No problem," he responded, still tense from the sudden shock that they all shared. "God, after this job is over, I think I need to go away for a while."

"Hey, can I ask you something?" she asked him.

"Sure, I could break the ice right about now," he responded jokingly.

"How did you ever become part of all this? This war. I mean, you don't seem like the kind of person to fight in it."

"Well, no one does at first, but things change. For me, it happened when I met Jaden. We were together in Newtown when the Empire attacked. I was so terrified when everything came crumbling down, I just wanted to run away and hide. But Jaden, he ran headfirst to danger because he knew there were people in trouble that needed his help. He didn't care about saving his own life when other people were about to lose theirs. Ever since that day, I knew I wanted to be strong like him. He was the kind of person that I wanted to be."

Even though they spoke softly, Jaden's enhanced senses allowed him to hear them from afar. At first, he smiled when he heard how Jesse wanted to be like him, but it quickly faded as he realized what that actually meant. To be him was to live alone, desperately trying to hide a great secret to avoid the constant threat of being feared and hunted by those around him. Sometimes, Jaden wished that he was someone else. Someone normal. For Jesse's sake, he hoped that he would be someone with a better life than him.

Both Astra and Jesse noticed how silent and distant he was, and it wasn't until Jesse spoke again that he really got his attention.

"Look, since you're closer to Jaden than any of us, I want to ask you something. I know he acts like a tough loner all the time but...take care of him, alright? He may not look it, but he needs someone out there looking out for him. Even if he is an Ark Knight, he's not that strong."

"What was that?!" Jaden asked.

"Nothing!" he said nervously.

Astra merely chuckled and agreed to Jesse's request. "Okay, Jesse. I will."

* * *

The Champions eventually reached the other end of the bridge, safe and sound, and pressed forward. As they came around the corner, they saw a large, metal door built into the mountain. Said door was engraved with the mark of the Nova Empire: a six-pointed star centered within a hexagon, a symbol of their self-proclaimed manifest destiny. They all knew that they had finally reached their destination.

"There it is!" Revan stated. "The Mines of Mesadah!"

Surrounding the entrance were carts filled with old mining tools: pickaxes, hammers, shovels; there was even an enormous laser drill standing next to it. This place was evidently the site of a massive mining operation. Whil magic crystals were discovered here, something far more extraordinary was unearthed as well. It was here that the Empire first discovered the advanced technology created in ancient times. It was even theorized that the Wasteland was once the site of the great city, Mesadah, before Zadon came and destroyed it. It supposedly became the site of the Divine Temple of Iblis after the war, but the city was soon abandoned after a volcanic eruption. Demons eventually made the buried city their home, making it too dangerous to venture through.

Today, the city became a huge archeological find made by the Empire, ultimately leading to their rise to power. They found ancient technology that they refined and adapted as their own: weapons, mechs, even airships. It's ironic how they began a war with the same technology their ancestors used to nearly destroy themselves. But humanity has a funny way of repeating its past mistakes.

"How are we supposed to get in?" Kaylah asked.

Revan observed the control panel sitting by the door. The device was old and rusty, but he saw that it was electronically connected to the entrance. He checked the cable and saw it was ripped open, and that wires inside were torn apart.

"Looks like the demons got into these wires. We won't be able to open it electronically."

"Don't worry, I know how to fix it!" Jaden announced.

He focused his energy into his Dark Night Sword, causing it to surge with blue light. He drove his blade through the metal gate, slowly slicing a large hole for them to go through. A large slab of iron slammed onto the dirt, and daylight poured into the cave for the first time in a decade. With the doorway open, Revan walked over and observed his handiwork.

"You know I was going to that myself," Revan said bluntly.

"Oh, sorry. Didn't mean to steal your thunder," Jaden responded.

With that wisecracking aside, they both stared into the black veil that filled the tunnel in front of them.

"The temple should be at the far end of the mines," he stated. "Is everyone ready?"

"Hey, we came all this way, didn't we? We might as well give it a shot." Astra remarked. "Remember, whatever's in there, don't face it alone. We're in this together."

On that note, everyone prepared their weapons and slowly entered the mine shaft, going deeper into the darkness with each step. Unbeknownst to them, a silent alarm was triggered as they passed through the doorway.

A warm draft blew across their faces as they walked in. It was like volcano itself was breathing through the vent, having just acknowledged their presence. Jaden could sense hordes of powerful monsters dwelling in the caverns. They had already walked into deadly territory, but they were deep in the Wasteland now.