Descent into the Abyss

Chapter 10

"You were right, Kou." Marcus chuckled as they stood gazing at the hill ahead of them, marking the end of the wasteland.

"It would seem that way, but the fact that it reaches as far as it does... is still awe-inspiring," Kou replied, mentally replaying the miles they had traversed.

Marcus gazed upon the growing terrain, noting the thousands of overturned corpses of trees stretching up the barren hill.

"It pushed everything away... for, what?" Marcus paused, looking back at the wasteland. "That had to have been twenty, thirty miles, Kou. Was that the power of the Gate or from Vaelone?"

"Honestly, Young Marcus... I don't know. Vaelone is similar to what you would consider a deity or god. Not once in Rozan history have we seen them, in person, and yet, they made an appearance once I had died. It seems like some twisted sense of destiny, that the one to end the Kryx-Lordye's reign was the creator of the Rozans." Kou replied as Marcus began scaling the ruinous hillside.

As the terrain began scaling upwards, Marcus resorted to almost a bear crawl, digging the front end of his shoes into the dirt and gripping the decaying bark. Higher and higher he climbed, pulling himself over the clustering of fragmented trees, until at last, he stood at the zenith. Looking down the opposite side of the hill, Marcus sighed in relief at the presence of the desolate town.

For as far as he could see from his vantage atop the hill, innumerable buildings laid in ruin of varying degrees. Some had been decimated completely, collapsing in upon themselves, while others were only missing chunks from their walls and ceilings. The damage, reasonably, lessened as Marcus's gaze went further back, but even on the fringes of the town, he could still see several buildings that suffered damage.

"There should still be some supplies, in the stores or gas stations." Marcus reasoned, beginning to descend the hill towards the town.

"Yes, your body is in dire need of sustenance..." Kou began, but Marcus scoffed and shook his head.

"No offense, Kou, but you don't need to tell me that I'm starving..." Marcus grumbled, reaching down and grabbing his stomach, grimacing at the pain.

"I understand that, Young Marcus. Just based on your memories---"

"Wait, what!?" Marcus stopped cold, remembering the years he spent on his own.

"The time I spent in your mind, while you were asleep in that stasis... I delved deep into your memories. Not entirely by choice, Young Marcus, should I say." Kou began to explain.

"How so, Kou? I thought that the Rozans were extremely skilled when it came to telepathy and whatnot?" Marcus asked, continuing his progression down the side of the hill.

"Yes, Young Marcus, I would say that we were, but I've never experienced nor trained in using those same powers outside of my consciousness. Being without my body, and yet existing in yours, a human's body. It is as much of a shock to me as it is to you, but in my time dealing with this newfound event, I was thrown into your unconscious mind."

Marcus paused, looking up at the clouds rolling in above him, cloaking the afternoon sun.

"What all did you see..." He asked hesitantly, lowering his gaze back to his descending path.

"I saw you leave your father's, optimistic in a future yet to be realized. I watched as you slowly turned from that optimistic boy into a man suffering. You resorted to..."

"I know what I resorted to, Kou. I don't want to go on a walk down memory lane right now. Rather find something to eat." Marcus interrupted, climbing over another overturned tree.