Opening his eyes, Cain awoke to strange surroundings.
He found himself leaning against one of the pillars in the Temple entrance. He opened his eyes to everyone looking at him as if he were in a zoo.
"Uh? What?"
Marko stood beside him, looking on with weariness.
"Do you not remember what happened? You went all skin and bone and had that cloud of yours devour a man; you even forced the Captain to one knee."
"I what?!"
Jaxith spoke up. "Mr. Cain, do you remember what happened at all? You passed out after killing the leader of those Republic guys; it's been almost an hour. We've been waiting for you to wake up."
Cain tried to stand but was sluggish. Rose and Jaxith helped him up.
On his feet at last, a terrible headache pounded through his skull.
"I... I don't remember doing anything. I remember I was on the floor...it felt like I was going to die of hunger, but that's it."
"Do you know why you would act like that? It was chilling, to say the least. Have you ever entered a state like that before?"
As the fog in his mind cleared up, Cain quickly tried to find memories of the event, but he really couldn't recall anything.
So, he then searched for memories related to the state he was in—a state of exhaustion and overexertion. He quickly realized that his other self had never experienced such a state.
"I-I, maybe it's due to me overexerting myself? I've never used all my energy before. T-that could be the cause. I must've been in a state of hunger from losing so much of myself to those electric rifles."
Cain was shocked by what his companions told him, but he found it plausible. His body seemed to go on autopilot to acquire energy. He was out of 'nutrients', and without such a resource, he suspected he could die.
It could be why his other self never tried to force anything too much.
'Thankfully I didn't go after anyone close. I feel sorry for the one who died...rest in peace, I suppose.'
It was regretful he killed someone, but that very same person was trying to hurt his allies, so this was the best outcome. Especially since Cain didn't have time to mull over one more sin in the bucket; he had to reach the fountain.
With a sigh, Connie stood up and looked down the hall.
"Well, at least nothing bad happened. We took too long waiting here, though. Who knows if any other groups have made it to the fountain? We should start moving again."
"I'm fine now, no hunger. I'm good to go."
With his confirmation, Connie felt better and regained her spunk. "Great! Everyone! Get ready; we're heading deeper into the structure. We've already spent too much time here. We continue in 5."
Connie held up one of her hands so everybody could see they were to leave in 5 minutes. From there, everyone started packing, and in the allotted time given, they were ready to go.
"Alright, let's move out!"
...
Journeying through the Temple, Cain stayed back. He was absorbed in studying one of the dropped batons used by those Republic soldiers.
It was an interesting device that seemed to create an open lighting cage, if you will. As you swung the weapon, the electricity would home in on flesh instead of the orb. If you didn't have a thick hide like Connie, then burn scars would accumulate.
Marko and Rose were proof of this; even though the enemy couldn't win against them, they still left the battle with a few first-degree burns.
'Interesting design, but it doesn't seem all too helpful. The baton was hollowed out, so I doubt it's made for contact. What's more interesting is this orb.'
Cain tapped the orb on the tip of the baton, and in response, a rattling sound perked his ears. Curious about the noise, he broke off the tip and shook it around.
'Is there a marble in this thing?'
Cain squeezed, hard. It took a lot of pressure, but the tip soon cracked, and what was inside was revealed.
In the palm of his hand, a little white pebble was fixed between the shards of glass. Cain immediately knew what it was; small trace amounts of energy around him were already beginning to be sucked in.
'This makes the second theory that much more plausible; Kiok would in no way sell these orbs to Fume, so there's only one other answer.'
Rulers, these orbs must've been given by the rulers. Cain couldn't wrap his head around any other answer.
'That system must be the answer to this. Rulers get accepted into the system and are given things that break the rules of the world...in no way should it be possible to ignore the main effects of a core. That system is the answer; otherwise, I really don't know what this white orb's origins are.'
He tossed the orb to the ground and stomped on it. The shards seemed to defy gravity as they floated up and disappeared.
'It has to be the system.'
...
"Ugh! Are we going in circles? Where is the Fountain?"
"Connie, calm down; this place is huge. In no way would we find the fountain so easily."
Connie was beginning to get annoyed. To calm the massive lady, Marko and Rose took up the job of making the stroll fun. They got Connie to play games with them or kept her mind off the excessive wandering by talking.
But even they were starting to get worried about how long they had to walk. It felt like it had been days since they left the entrance.
"Cain, come over here; I believe this is the same symbol from before. The walls all have these weird carvings."
Lancey was studying the structure and did so with Cain's help. They had already found that the walls held a story, and so far, it went like this:
A world of water was contained in a sphere. One day, the sphere cracked, and part of the world, along with its people, fell onto a disc. From there, the people tried to break the disc but were instead given another sphere, but it was smaller.
With the sphere, the people could do more, but soon, they forgot about their original goal and fought for the sphere. A big war caused everyone to retreat under the water, and...
That was all Lancey and Cain had found, and the symbol in front of them was at the end of every carving. It depicted a trident covered in vines, or perhaps seaweed; it was hard to tell.
"If my guess is correct, this whole hall is a puzzle; all we need to do is find this symbol somewhere off the wall."
"Although that seems right, why would the trap be that easy? These were an advanced people."
Cain frowned as the smug smile on Lancey's face widened. "But what if they weren't advanced? Look at the carvings we've already seen; the workmanship gets worse and worse over time. By the time it finishes, it would be no better than a child's!"
"But why would the whole trap be easy then?"
"Because the structure was built inward! A huge place like this must've taken decades to create; generation after generation took off the work of their forefathers to complete this grand intricate structure."
Cain relented. "Fine, we'll look for the symbol."
Overhearing them and watching the discussion, Jaxith tapped Cain on the shoulder.
"Mr. Cain, you mean this symbol?"
Jaxith pointed to a floor tile underneath one of the tables in the hallway. Stepping on it, the sound of cogs filled the hall, and ringing echoed, the ring was like a bell and seemed to be coming from a specific direction.
Everything seemed to happen so fast but the ringing clicked for many, even if they didn't hear the conversation.
"Follow the ringing! It must be the exit!"
At Lancey's words, the whole group wasted no time getting out of there.
Connie charged ahead, whooping joyfully as she sprinted toward the light. The others scrambled after her, muscles burning and lungs gasping.
"Haha Bye suckers! Last one out is a rotten egg!"
Everyone ran out of this trap as fast as they could. As they neared the sound of the ringing bell, their feet seemed to move quicker and quicker. Before them was a bell ringing beside a wall now folded open; past it was a cave? They could already smell the damp and moldy entrance all the way down the hall.
That place was different than where they were now. They poured through the doorway like a flock of birds, flying at great speeds. Many forgot how to stop and crashed into the rocky floor or against the cave walls.
Cain patted himself down to make sure he didn't drop anything before examining his surroundings.
The musty, damp cave echoed with dripping water. The winding tunnels had eroded over time, with water flowing across the rocky floor.
Droplets fell rhythmically from the stalactites above, echoing through the dark tunnels.
Some made comments while others kissed the ground in happiness. Connie was too tall to kiss the ground, so she hugged a nearby stalactite instead.
"Enough, we don't know if anyone else made it this far. We have to find the Fountain as soon as possible."
Sense seemed to return, and people realized how strange their actions had just been. Connie was even blushing.
Unfortunately, like before, this place too was a maze of sorts. With no sense of where to go, it was hard finding which way was the right one. But Cain focused on his senses and found that water was concentrating somewhere and decided to follow it.
As they continued, the sound of flowing water got louder, and hope that they found their long-awaited target rose.
Finally, they found themselves in front of a large stone door.
As they did, a band of pirates entered the path. Their leader, Captain Parks of the Black Sabers, looked dumbfounded when questioned.
"What do you mean who are we? We're one of the three great pirate fleets! Who are you nobodies?"
Marko giggled, "He's right, Captain. We were just a mere smuggling crew!"
While that fiasco unfolded, Cain ran towards the door.
'If even pirates are making it this far...'
"Hey, he's going for the door! Stop him!"
"Defend! Let's make sure Cain can get what he came for!"
The two groups clashed, all the while Cain was already pushing the double doors open. Pebbles fell around him before the door continued to open without the need of his strength.
Cain's heart pounded as he pushed open the stone doors.
At first, it was only a tiny sliver, but it soon opened to the side of his torso before finally opening all the way.
It was blocked out before, but now it could be heard clearly. A massive war was going on behind these doors. A great expanse before him filled with magic and technology beyond his current understanding.
And in between it all was a massive fountain. At the top of it, like a jewel, was a single round ball, the core of this entire territory.