The three of them ventured deep into the cave, remaining cautious of the possible presence of the ancient beings. The darkness seemed to press in on them from all sides, making every shadow a potential threat.
These creatures possess immense strength, capable of creating deep dents even in iron plates frozen solid. One can imagine what this power could do to a human body. Therefore, even Kakashi and Nadare, both skilled ninjas, had to be extremely careful.
Urushi and Kakashi led the group, Sandayū was in the middle, and Nadare covered the rear. As they moved deeper, Urushi's nose twitched constantly, his discomfort visible.
As Urushi had mentioned, the cave indeed exuded a decaying stench. Though not easily detectable by the human nose, it was a powerful stimulus to the keen senses of canines.
"There's something wrong with this smell," Urushi growled softly. "It's... unnatural."
The foul smell continually blew from deep within the cave, covering a vast area of the ice field, which had caused the sled dogs to avoid approaching the area.
After observing for a moment, Nadare spoke up. "There's airflow coming out of the cave. It seems like there's another exit."
Kakashi and Sandayū remained silent, tacitly agreeing.
Soon, the group arrived at a massive chamber resembling a slaughterhouse for animals. Inside were heaps of animal bones and marine fossils. The sight was grotesque, piles of bleached bones reflecting what little light penetrated this deep into the cave.
Sandayū's breath caught in his throat. "This... this must be the place Yoshiro mentioned in his radio message."
Kakashi nodded grimly. "Let's keep moving. We don't want to linger here."
None of the three had the mindset to marvel at the bizarre sight and continued deeper into the cave. The crunch of their footsteps on the icy floor seemed unnaturally loud in the oppressive silence.
After walking several more meters, they encountered the fossils of the ancient beings. Standing before the fossils, they finally understood what these creatures looked like in full.
For someone seeing such creatures for the first time, the terror might be suppressed by curiosity and the thrill of facing the unknown. But having already witnessed the devastation at the camp, all positive emotions were now gone.
Once those impractical positive feelings were stripped away, what remained was humanity's most primal and profound emotion.
Fear!
Just looking at the lifelike fossils made Kakashi feel a chill down his spine. His right hand instinctively reached for his kunai, afraid that these fossils, like the biological samples back at the camp, might suddenly come to life.
These things... they're monstrous, Kakashi's grip tightened on the kunai.
But a fossil is just a fossil. Its only function was to evoke terror in those who looked upon it.
The three of them paused for a moment, preparing themselves mentally for the ancient creatures that could appear at any moment.
As they pressed on, the airflow inside the cave became more noticeable. Kakashi, leading the group, could even faintly hear the sound of the wind. As the light increased, the trio found themselves emerging from another exit of the cave.
Standing at the exit, Kakashi realized that they were no longer at the foot of the mountain but midway up. From this vantage point, the three of them could look down upon an awe-inspiring scene that would be etched in their memories forever.
Beyond the suffocatingly tall black mountain range lay a massive basin encircled by jagged black ridges. Nestled within this basin was what appeared to be an ancient city.
"What... what are we looking at?" Sandayū muttered.
"A city," Kakashi deduced. "But not one built by human hands."
Nadare shook his head, struggling to comprehend the sight before them. "Impossible. How could this have remained hidden for so long?"
The architecture of this ancient city was bizarrely geometric. Many of the building edges had collapsed or been worn down, resembling melting wax houses. However, considering that this city was likely built by the ancient beings and had survived for countless eons in such harsh, frozen conditions, its resilience was impressive.
The dense cluster of buildings formed a labyrinthine pattern of symmetrical sequences, stretching beyond the visible horizon. Shifting his gaze to the surrounding black ridges, Kakashi noticed that the ridges were pockmarked with black cracks and pentagonal pits.
Whenever the wind passed through these pits, the black ridges emitted an eerie whistling sound. This grim and unsettling melody gnawed at the trio's hearts, like stumbling upon the worst nightmares buried in childhood fears.
For a brief moment, Kakashi was transported back to the scene of his father committing suicide. He could almost feel the cold touch of his father's corpse. The chilling sensation was exactly the same!
"Kakashi."
"Kakashi!"
Urushi's voice snapped him back to reality. Kakashi took several deep breaths, letting the cold air jolt him out of his painful childhood memories.
Glancing at his companions, he saw that Sandayū and Nadare had also momentarily lost themselves and had just regained their composure.
"What was that?" Sandayū asked, his voice shaky. "That sound... it felt like it was inside my head."
Kakashi shook his head, trying to clear the lingering unease. "I'm not sure. But it reminds me of something I've experienced before. It's like... an illusion, but not quite."
Yet, whether it was the Cthulhu statue or the whistling from the black mountains, both evoked a single, unified emotion in those who saw or heard them.
Dread!
Following the sled tracks that led from the mountainside, the trio cautiously entered the city built by the ancient beings. The desolate ruins around them seemed to whisper that the city's former masters had long met their end and urged them not to fear, to proceed without hesitation.
However, the three knew that this labyrinthine city was not entirely devoid of life. Somewhere within might be Sandayū's brother, Yoshiro, possibly still alive, and the ancient beings pursuing him.
In addition to the sled tracks, there were also the twisted and irregular footprints of the ancient beings. The three advanced with heightened vigilance, more so than when they had been inside the dark cave, carefully following the sled marks.
In the city, Kakashi noticed that besides the square buildings scattered around, there were also massive hive-like fortifications. These were clearly built in response to some form of attack.
"These structures," Kakashi mused aloud, "they're not designed for ground-based threats. It's as if they were defending against something... from above."
Nadare frowned. "But what could have attacked them?"
Kakashi shook his head, unable to provide an answer. If something had once threatened these ancient, powerful beings, could it still exist?
Following the sled tracks, the trio arrived at a giant stone tower. The top of the tower had already collapsed, making it impossible to determine its original height. However, the archway at the base remained intact, allowing the three to enter.
Inside the dark archway, Urushi called out, beckoning the group to a corner of the room. There, several empty cans were piled up, evidence that Yoshiro had stayed there for some time.
But at that moment, Yoshiro was no longer present. The sled tracks once again led the group toward the abyss beneath the stone tower.
---
How does Kakashi describe the ancient city?
It's Archi-tech-ture is Might-y Guy-gantic.