The Godsfall Chronicles

Book 7, Chapter 32 - Underground Vestiges

Cloudhawk brought Idonea through dimensions to a foreign planet .

His plan was to bring her to her father . Furthermore, he had news of Kirin’s death, a fact he wished to share with Phoenix .  

Bruno and Phoenix were prisoners and enemies of the wastelands, but there was some understanding between them . Stormford’s Master Demonhunter was not ambitious, nor was he a man of blind loyalty . His faith in the G.o.ds was built on how they treated his family and the people he cared about .

Idonea, as Bruno’s daughter, was the closest person to him . Perhaps if he brought them together, Cloudhawk could use that relations.h.i.+p to win Bruno over to his side .

As for Phoenix? Her combat prowess was without question . She was the greatest warrior Cloudhawk had ever met outside of Arcturus Cloude . Only her mind was a storm of rage and her personality was violently explosive . With news of her younger brother’s death, he wasn’t sure what reaction to expect .

A short after arriving a the jungle planet, Cloudhawk and Idonea came upon a small base . Their presence was marked right away . Angry eyes and red faces followed him, the expressions of people harboring deep-seated hatred .

Idonea was at a loss . What was this place? Why did these people hate Cloudhawk so much?

He paid their glares no mind . Cloudhawk walked down the path at Idonea’s side as though strolling through a garden . “Don’t look so shocked . I defeated them and sent them here . ”

Defeated them? She felt it odd . So he captured these people and left them stranded on this strange world . If that was the case she understood why her father never returned home . But where was he? Why hadn’t he shown himself yet?

The prison camp was erected by the prisoners themselves . Dumont, Natessa and the Cloude family had been sent here first . Bruno, Phoenix and their people arrived afterward . Over the past two years Cloudhawk had sent over two thousand prisoners of war to this place . Those who were exiled here were not ordinary soldiers . So this prison camp was home to a strong garrison of enemy troops .

A grizzled veteran of the Cloude family shouted at Cloudhawk as they pa.s.sed . “You have the b.a.l.l.s to show your face here! Aren’t you afraid we’ll b.l.o.o.d.y you?!”

“You think you can? As for being b.l.o.o.d.y, that’s what showers are for . What I hear is you want to try your luck again . ” His response was flippant . He’d beaten them all before, and even though they had greater numbers Cloudhawk still paid them no mind . He continued . “You only used to be my enemy . All you have to do is change your stage of mind and pledge to fight with me . Then I’ll consider letting you go . ”

A host of angry stares followed him, but they said nothing .  

Cloudhawk had become very strong very quickly . He’d destroyed Arcuturus, conquered Skycloud and captured the other Masters in short order . They were no match for him, but even so they refused to give in .

Cloudhawk went on . “I’m not here to trade bulls.h.i.+t . Where are Masters Bruno and Phoenix? Why don’t I see them? I brought Bruno his daughter . ”

Uncertain looks were pa.s.sed among the others .

“Well? What happened?”

He could see that something was up by the way they looked at one another . Something was up, since he couldn’t sense either of the Masters nearby . They weren’t in the camp .

And not just those two, either . Natessa and Dumont were also absent .

It made him suspect there was some sort of problem . Had something happened? That shouldn’t be the case . Phoenix and Bruno were strong enough to handle pretty much any issue . It wouldn’t make sense for there to be some great danger that Master Demonhunters couldn’t handle, but these third-rate warriors managed to survive .

“Spit it out . ” He wasn’t in the mood to mince words . Cloudhawk narrowed his eyes and fires sparked in their depths . “Now!”

Another few seconds of silence followed until at last someone stepped forward . “The Masters brought a team with them to explore the vestiges of a civilization underground . Three days and three nights ago . They still haven’t returned . ”

Cloudhawk glance at the sky, toward the white-blue sun . One day-night cycle here was like two on earth . So they’d been gone for five or six days . It was beginning to sound like they’d gone missing .

“Has anyone gone after them?”

“We haven’t heard from those we’ve sent out . ”

Worry filled Idonea . How could this be, why would they lose contact? Her father was a Master Demonhunter! She’d never heard of someone so strong going missing just from exploring some old ruins .

Cloudhawk was equally perplexed, so to get to the bottom of it he began asking questions . It was revealed that this world was a very different place than it seemed . Beneath a thin upperworld crust was a world of old ruins .

Old tools and murals had been excavated, revealing that the vanished natives may have had something to do with G.o.ds and demons . With nothing but time, the prisoners set off to explore at Phoenix’s suggestion . They found a way to get down below ground and the elite force went off to see what they could discover .

Two Master Demonhunters and a group of highly capable fighters . At worst they should have been able to flee any threat .

It was far past the time they were supposed to have returned but there hadn’t been any word – not from the original team or any that went to find them . There was no other explanation other than something must have happened .

Cloudhawk examined the murals that had started the whole thing . Something was different about this world that made it unique from the others . First there was the dense vegetation, which immediately set it apart . Then there was the world beneath the surface .

“Well, it looks like I’m going to have to go poke around . ”

He took another glance at the murals as he made his decision . It was the right choice, whether to bring Bruno and Phoenix back or to discover whatever secrets these murals hinted at .

If he was going to go, he needed help . Idonea wasn’t strong enough and taking her with him would only hold him back . So he returned to his home and called Dawn . Once she was made aware of the situation, she was also at a loss .

“Underground vestiges? Where?” She couldn’t wait to dig up the mystery .  

Cloudhawk appointed one of the prisoners as a guide . When they arrived and saw what remained, even Cloudhawk was without words . This was a place unlike anywhere else he’d seen .

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