Reinventing Magic: An Inventor's Tale-Chapter 35: Echoes of the Past

Kael froze as soon as the words left his mouth.

Keira turned to him sharply, her brow furrowed. "What do you mean, ’not in this world’?"

Kael cursed silently, trying to keep his expression neutral. "I mean..." he hesitated, searching for an explanation, "it feels... alien, doesn’t it? Unlike anything in Ardania."

Keira studied him for a moment, her piercing gaze making his heart pound. She seemed to sense there was more to his statement but chose not to press further, her attention drawn back to the ruin towering before them—a sleek, metallic structure bathed in a faint, otherworldly glow.

"This place..." Keira’s voice trembled, her fingers tightening around her Veilbreaker Staff. "It doesn’t belong to this world."

Kael nodded, grateful for the shift in focus. "It does. And it’s unlike anything we’ve ever known."

The metallic hum that filled the air inside the ruin was both alien and enchanting. Kael and Keira stood at the threshold of the ancient architecture, their breaths shallow as they absorbed the sight before them. The glowing panels lining the walls seemed to pulse with life, casting shimmering patterns on the sleek metal beams that formed the framework of the structure.

Kael, however, was quiet. His eyes darted across the room, taking in every detail. The geometric symmetry of the design, the embedded crystals glowing with faint energy, and the unmistakable hum of advanced machinery—this was something he’d only ever seen in his previous life on Earth, though even there, it had been the stuff of speculative fiction.

"It’s not just advanced," Kael finally said, his voice tinged with awe. "This... this is beyond anything I’ve ever seen."

Keira turned to him, her brows furrowing. "You mean—"

"Yes." Kael cut her off, his tone decisive yet tinged with a caution he rarely displayed. "Let’s go inside. We need to know more."

The two ventured deeper into the structure, their footsteps echoing faintly against the pristine metal floor. Despite the ruin’s apparent age, it was impeccably preserved, as if frozen in time by some powerful enchantment. As they walked, Kael’s analytical mind raced to understand the mechanisms behind such preservation, while Keira couldn’t help but marvel at the fusion of magic and technology surrounding them.

They entered the central chamber, where the air seemed thicker, charged with a palpable energy. A massive spherical device hovered above a pedestal at the center, encased in an intricate lattice of silver and gold. Its core glowed with swirling mana, casting mesmerizing patterns on the walls.

"It’s beautiful," Keira whispered, stepping closer, her eyes wide with wonder.

"Woah, this is amazing..." Kael echoed, his voice filled with awe as he joined her side. fгee𝑤ebɳoveɭ.cøm

Kael approached cautiously, his hand brushing against a nearby console. He noticed a large spirit crystal embedded within it, faintly glowing as if waiting for activation. Without hesitation, Kael placed his hand on the crystal, channeling a thread of his mana into it.

The crystal sprang to life, and a hologram flickered into existence above the console. It depicted a man dressed in a sleek, form-fitting suit unlike any attire Kael or Keira had ever seen. His face was gaunt, his eyes sunken with fatigue. At first, the man spoke in an unfamiliar language, but as the hologram registered Kael’s mana signature, the language shifted seamlessly into one both Kael and Keira could understand.

"Date: Solstice 12th, Year 12,304 CE (Chronos Era Calendar)," the hologram began. The voice was strained, laced with both urgency and despair. Kael’s brow furrowed at the mention of a calendar system he didn’t recognize, though he committed it to memory.

The man continued, "The rifts... they opened faster than we anticipated. Thousands of them, spewing creatures from beyond this dimension. Our defenses, even with the most advanced artifacts, were no match. Billions are dead. The cities..." He paused, his voice faltering. "The cities are gone."

Keira’s hand went to her mouth, her eyes wide. "This can’t be real..." she murmured.

Kael remained silent, his mind racing. The man’s words painted a picture of unimaginable devastation. Yet, the technology and magic he described held an eerie familiarity, as if Kael were looking at the culmination of paths his own world might have taken.

The hologram resumed. "We managed to seal the rifts with a prototype artifact. The Seal of Eternus should hold for approximately five millennia. But the calculations are clear: the seals will fail. When that happens, the rifts will reopen, and the chaos will begin anew. We started Project Golem in hopes of countering the creatures that had been roaming, but we ran out of time. If anyone is seeing this... know that our failure must not be yours."

The hologram flickered and faded, leaving the room in stunned silence. The faint hum of the spherical device filled the void, a somber reminder of the dire warning they’d just received.

"Five thousand years," Kael muttered, his gaze fixed on the empty space where the hologram had been. "And if this is true... we’re nearing the end of that timeline."

Keira shook her head, her voice barely above a whisper. "This... it’s too much. How can we even begin to process this?"

Before Kael could respond, a pulse of mana rippled through the room, faint but distinct. His mana sense flared, and he turned toward its source. "There’s something else," he said, moving swiftly to a nearby alcove. Embedded in the wall was another spirit crystal, this one glowing erratically as if reacting to some unseen stimulus.

Kael placed his hand on the crystal, channeling mana once more. A new hologram appeared, this time displaying a screen filled with ancient text. Kael’s ability to decipher the runes kicked in, and the message sent a chill down his spine:

"Current Date: Glaciermoon 20th, Year 982 AK (Ardanian Kingdom Calendar). Time Remaining: 5 years until seal failure."

"Five years..." Kael whispered, his hands trembling slightly as he let the information sink in. He turned to Keira, whose face was pale. "We have five years to figure out how to stop this."

Keira’s grip tightened on her staff. "Then we have no time to waste."

Kael nodded. "First, we need to learn more about this Project Golem. It might hold the key to saving us."

They continued their exploration, moving cautiously through the ruin’s dimly lit corridors. Each room they entered held relics of the past—shards of glowing artifacts, intricate machinery, and ancient texts—but nothing provided a clear answer about Project Golem. It wasn’t until they reached a sealed chamber at the far end of the structure that they found something truly extraordinary.

The door slid open with a soft hiss, revealing a capsule filled with glowing liquid. Inside, suspended in the fluid, was a young woman. Her hair floated like a halo around her serene face, and her fingers twitched faintly as if in response to their presence.

Keira gasped. "She’s alive..."

Kael stepped closer, his eyes narrowing as he studied the capsule. The woman’s body was covered only by the faint shimmer of the liquid, leaving her entirely exposed. He noticed faint runes etched along the edges of the capsule, their glow indicating a complex magical stasis.

"Let’s get her out," Kael said, moving to a nearby console.

Keira hesitated. "Are you sure? What if it’s dangerous?"

"We don’t have a choice. If she’s part of Project Golem, we need her."

Kael activated the release mechanism, and the liquid began to drain from the capsule. As it emptied, the woman’s body sagged slightly against the glass, her movements still faint but perceptible.

Keira immediately turned to Kael, her cheeks flushing. "Turn around!" she snapped. "She’s naked!"

Kael blinked, then quickly averted his gaze. Keira summoned a cloak with her Veilbreaker Staff, the fabric materializing in her hands. She draped it over the woman, ensuring she was decently covered before allowing Kael to turn back.

"That’s better," Keira muttered. Then her eyes widened. "Young master, look at this."

She pointed to the woman’s chest, where a spirit crystal was embedded just above her heart. The crystal pulsed faintly, its light synchronized with the woman’s subtle movements.

"A spirit crystal... embedded in a living being?" Kael said, his voice filled with a mix of awe and unease. "That’s unheard of."

Keira nodded. "It’s almost like she’s a construct... but she feels human though?."

Kael knelt beside the young woman, his heart pounding as he checked for a pulse. To his surprise, there was none. He placed a hand near her nose and mouth but felt no breath.

"Is she dead?" Keira asked, her voice trembling with a mixture of fear and hope.

Kael shook his head, his eyes narrowing in concentration. "No... She’s something else. This crystal... it might be sustaining her or..."

Keira gently shook the woman’s shoulder, her voice soft and pleading. "Wake up... please wake up."

But the woman remained still. Kael’s mind raced as he studied her. The advanced stasis technology, the spirit crystal, the faint signs of life—it all pointed to one conclusion.

"This girl," Kael murmured, his voice filled with awe and realization. "Could it be? She’s the Golem."

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