The Dawn of the New World

1427  Bridge of Fate

The first area seemed to be what little remained of a grand metropolis after an apocalyptic battle.

Most of it was little more than rubble, dust, and fire, ruined beyond recognition but there were still a scant few vestiges left just intact enough to show how marvelous the place must have been in its prime.

Shimmering rare metals and all manners of now-extinct jewels could be found lining the random streets.

Lord Yami saw Hao Xuan's eye moving back and forth and decided to volunteer some more information until they reached their destination.

"This is where most of the residents of this realm lived. It was 'afterlife' before the idea of the afterlife even existed."

"It must have been amazing," Claudia chimed in, "If even the remains are this extravagant."

"Unfortunately we have no way to know for certain. Zeus and Odin restricted all information coming out of the realm before destroying what little managed to survive. They wanted to remove all evidence of their existence."

"That must have been a very long time ago but....it looks so recent," even Max couldn't hold himself back from commenting after seeing the fire and smoke billowing from every other structure.

"Of course, this realm exists outside of time. For us it has been countless millenniums but here it has not been very long. This bridge was called the 'Bridge of Fate' and its power is the only thing keeping us safe. But as we get closer to the temple the energies should lessen in intensity which is when we will start to see some of the Gods walking around."

"What happens if we step outside before that?" Max curiously inquired.

"Not sure. Either you will immediately cease to exist, be destroyed by the energies that laid waste to this realm in the first place, or be transported to another time. Care to find out?"

Lord Yami looked back at him with a questioning gaze but he just laughed it off, "Haha, maybe another time. Today I am here for another reason!"

"Hmph, I am sure you are."

The remainder of the journey through the Bridge of Fate was relatively quiet. The metropolis went on for what felt like an eternity before the scenes began to change to a dilapidated forest.

Elder Taisi paused to cautiously extend his hand outside the protection of the bridge before nodding towards Baba Jezda.

"My lady, this seems like a good location, I will go out to cast the spell. It should last for some time after my death so unless he leaves the bridge, they should not be able to detect him."

Baba Jezda nodded in acknowledgment before sprinkling some black powder on his There was even half a body of a titan strewn openly on the ground on which there 16:22

body.

"By the Nine, your name will forever be etched upon the Halls of the Sanctum! Let their sacrifice bring you closer to the Masters!"

"By the Nine!" Elder Illya repeated from the back and even Lord Yami couldn't help but whisper under his breath, "By the Nine, may your soul find peace..."

He closed his eyes to utter a prayer which surprised Hao Xuan but the others did not seem to care either way.

Elder Taisi jumped off the bridge and his silhouette immediately vanished as if devoured by the decrepit forest. Not a minute later the surroundings began to get darker but only around where they were.

"The spell is in place," Baba Jezda said while looking around but Lord Yami was not convinced it would hold.

"The Bridge of Fate traverses through each of the ancient ten realms created by Chronos and his brothers. No matter how powerful or potent the spell, its effects will greatly lessen when we move from one realm to the next, if only momentarily."

And Baba Jezda could not refute his claims either, "We can do nothing about that. If it comes to it we will have to fight but...they should be moving towards Taisi as we speak. He will lead them away while we continue to move forward."

'Was that black powder that will attract the Gods to him?' Hao Xuan wondered.

It seemed like a harmless ritual to him but there was so much more to it.

One less, the group now being led by Baba Jezda herself continued moving on the bridge with bated breaths.

After some time the scenes began to shift for a third time and the darkness surrounding them almost vanished for over a minute before slowly returning to its original shade.

"Seven more to go," Max joked but got no response from the others.

They mostly stayed silent apart from Claudia who couldn't help herself from whispering into Hao Xuan's ears after seeing his conflicted expression when they entered the sixth realm.

"Master, is everything okay? You seem troubled..."

"Yeah, I'm fine...just got a strange feeling of deja vu. Feels like I've seen this before," he said looking at the scene of utter destruction laid out in front of them.

There was even half a body of a titan strewn openly on the ground on which there seemed to be an ongoing battle.

"How is that even possible??"