CHAPTER 35: A FALLEN EMPIRE

An hour had passed since he began reading the book and his face was still buried inside. For every line he read, the more shocked and confused he became.

The book starts its time of events roughly at the beginning of the Marcia Empire's creation in the year 816 A.C. At the time, a battle of cosmic proportions took place between the Monarch of Wisdom and Rak'shasa the Destroyer. This battle eventually ended with both of them disappearing. There were many theories behind this event, but none of them were conclusive enough to say they were correct.

Before these events occurred, the human domain was rightfully named the Luminaric Empire and their war against the Xulu almost ruptured the entire solar system. After the two gods disappeared, many of the fleets were destroyed, leaving only the survivors of Mars, a large province called 'Marcia', to become the dominant force.

This Mars settlement grew in strength and became independent; calling itself the Marcia Empire. The old Luminaric Empire disappeared from the annals of history as well, leaving only the Marcians as the remnants of humanity.

This completely puzzled Hermes. How can such a large and powerful empire that held territories across the entire solar system and maybe even beyond disappear and leave behind an offshoot of its past glory on a single planet? Where did the Luminaric Empire even go? The book only mentioned their vanishment, but not how they vanished.

Another thing that confused him was why the residents of Sanctuary City and even the Marcia Empire do not venture out into space to look for a more habitable home. Surely there had to be other planets in the Universe that are more hospitable than this mutant-infested world?

Elizabeth had also told Hermes before about the Sidereal Ships which Dorian was supposedly crafting. If knowledge about such devices and technology exists, why are they still on this planet?

Although he wanted to mention it to Elizabeth, he knew that she was probably as clueless as him. Whatever reason was keeping them stuck to this planet had to be big enough that only the ones at the top should know it. He decided it was best to try to ask Arthur instead.

Continuing his reading, Hermes was able to understand the Marcia Empire's formation. Back in 816 A.C, there were ten noble houses, excluding the three he was currently familiar with. Their ancestry traces back to the descent of the Monarch of Wisdom, who they all viewed as their God.

After his disappearance, they formed the Marcia Empire together and combated the newly discovered mutant threat, which emerged around the same time. The forces of the Xulu who called themselves the Mok'sha Legion also periodically attacked them. These skirmishes and momentary periods of peace lasted for roughly a hundred Earth years.

All of that would change, however, when the first king of the Marcia Empire was crowned. In 964 A.C, King Rudwell von Marcia the Great became emperor. His policies changed the course of all Marcians forever. Before his reign, the noble houses all held equal authority in creating policies, with the Marcia royal family holding only a ceremonial role. Although he was technically the third king of the empire, the citizens all called him the first.

He created fertile land for farmers, lowered taxes, crafted educational programs for the young, and even provided better healthcare for everyone. The army he raised was powerful enough to almost crush the majority of the Mutant nests that had formed around their borders, giving the citizens a breather; they no longer had to worry about constant attacks.

But the biggest achievement he made during his reign had to be the humiliation he dealt to the Mok'sha Legion. At the time, Rudwell not only raised a powerful army composed of Guardians, but he was also a Celestial himself.

He would wield a large, heavy sword as he marched onto the battlefields fearlessly. Every battle he took part in resulted in huge bloodbaths for the Xulu forces. At that time, the Xulians had even given him a nickname: Emperor of Blood.

By the end of his campaign against the Xulu forces, the Mok'sha Legion was completely decimated, leaving only remnants of their past glory as they hid amongst the dunes and caves to survive.

It was unknown what stage as a Celestial he was, but many rightfully assume that he had reached the peak as a Stage 9 with 9.0 dimensionality. Some even say that he had already surpassed the strength of Celestials and stepped into a higher realm. There were not many accounts of what abilities he displayed in battle inside the book, so Hermes could not tell what exactly was the correct answer to the dilemma.

'Rudwell von Marcia… No wonder his face is plastered across every Sanctum coin in Sanctuary City. His legends honestly seem surreal to me. Can someone who can topple armies alone really exist? Then again, this world has Gods after all… Anything is possible.'

The exploits described in the book completely shocked him. It was as if he was reading the Greek myths about the demigods; a part of him wanted to discard this description as nothing but exaggerated stories.

Another thing he was confused about was how the Xulu forces became a threat to them again in the current timeline. If the Mok'sha Legion was destroyed, then could it be that after they hid away, they eventually regained their strength and came back for revenge, only to find out the old empire had been reduced to a small settlement that is now simply called 'Sanctuary City'?

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'If both the Xulu and the Mutants were not a threat, what led to the destruction of this powerful empire roughly one century later? The book describes the time period where Rudwell held the throne as the Golden Age; a time of prosperity for humanity, as many innovations were made to limit the hardships they faced in the past.'

'How did this supposed Golden Age end? Does this have anything to do with Diodorus's memoir?'

Hermes flipped the page in hopes of obtaining an answer. What met his eyes, however, was an absolutely baffling scene. Butterflies swam in his stomach as he peered into the book's pages; what was left in them…

What followed was not a slew of knowledge, but the absence of it. Every page after the chapter describing the Golden Age was empty! It was as if it had been erased or completely deleted. Hermes continued to flip from one blank page to the next, hoping to find anything left to read.

Disappointment filled his mahogany-textured eyes. He had reached the end of the book with no mention of the following events. It was clear to Hermes that someone had purposefully hidden what caused the fall of the Marcia Empire.

'What is the meaning of this… Could the fall of the empire have something to do with a dark secret that no one, not even the Guardians, are allowed to know? Sigh, this is so frustrating…'

It seemed as if every avenue he used to gain knowledge of the past was thwarted. In his previous readings, he understood why so much information had been lost; It makes sense for Sanctuary City to have accidentally forsaken many of its old records from over 17,500 years ago. However, this was the first time that the information he sought was purposefully censored without reason.

After finishing his reading session about three hours after he first began, Hermes stretched his body. Seeing the numbness fade away, he checked the time on his phone, which read 9:00 PM.

Noticing that there was a little more time left before Elizabeth arrived for their meeting, Hermes made his way toward the other sections to find another book to read to pass the time. Stumbling inside the Mysticism section, Hermes scoured through the catalog it offered.

His vision suddenly shifted toward a book with a familiar name. This was a book that Arthur himself recommended he should read, but never got around to doing so.

"Spirit World Chronicles…"

Picking it out of the shelf, Hermes examined its shape and texture in his hands. Compared to 'The Marcia Empire', the one he was currently holding felt older than it by at least a thousand years. It was surprising to Hermes that the ancient tome hadn't turned to rubble by now.

The grungy texture of its leather paired with the antique fragrance it exuded made him exercise caution when handling it. It was as if every page was breathing in memories and exhaling a wisp of a time long forgotten.

Hermes moved toward the usual table he and Elizabeth would meet at and sat down, with the book unfolded before him. His eyes began to analyze the ancient text that was close to fading away as his mind completely erased the presence of his surroundings.

'The Spirit World, foretold as the Realm of Knowledge, exists as a separate dimension from our earthly realm. It resides in concert with our world, entirely overlapping each other.'

Hermes continued to read the passage at an unprecedented speed. Every word made him eager to delve deeper into the subject.

'Verily, the Knowledge Force is naught but the frame; it doth serve as the very underpinnings upon which this domain rests. Within doth dwell a peculiar vigor, distinct from the Cosmic Force. This mysterious power is designated as Ethyria, and it doth bear the full weight of bringing forth Spirits and Elements into being.'

"Ethyria... That's the thing Arthur briefly mentioned..."

It confused him greatly when he first heard it. How can there still be something else related to spell crafting other than cosmic force?

However, the more he thought about it, the more sense it made. When Arthur told him that the Elements had nothing to do with cosmic force, he was left in a state of bewilderment. How can the supposed power behind all spells that Mystics cast not have anything to do with cosmic force? At that moment, he had rightfully assumed that something else had to exist to cover this fallacy.

There was still one thing he was confused about, however. 'Since Cosmic Force is rightfully known as 'The Lifeblood of the Universe', where does Ethyria fit into the mix? Could it be a power that exists outside the bounds of this universe, completely dwarfing its will?'

Blinded by his thirst for knowledge, Hermes continued to read the book at his usual pace, oblivious to the passage of time. One page turned into two, and two turned into three. Most of the knowledge at the start of the book mainly describes how Solari and other Ancestral Tongue languages functioned.

As his eyes glided from one word to the next, a melodious voice shattered the stillness, causing him to startle, nearly leaping from his seat.

"What are you reading?..."

With his eyes blinking in embarrassment, Hermes looked up; his gaze locked in a dance against the dazzling pink-hued gems before him. Shifting her honey-blonde hair to the back of her ear, Elizabeth sat down quietly before him. Noticing her presence, Hermes smiled.

"It's a book I just picked up called 'Spirit world Chronicles'. It's fairly interesting."

Shifting her eyes toward the open book, Elizabeth nodded gracefully.

"My uncle has a copy of it at home. I have read it as well…"

"Oh? That's very nice. I'm guessing it's probably in better shape compared to this old fart…" Hermes pointed at the book sarcastically.

Hearing his remark, a faint smile appeared on Elizabeth's lips, one that he had never seen before from her. Noticing his surprised expression, Elizabeth immediately shifted back to her cold demeanor and changed the subject swiftly.

"Did… You find anything regarding that?"

Hermes shook his head slowly. A face full of disappointment flushed out the shock he had at the delightful scene he just witnessed.

"Sadly, no. I researched the causes of each Disharmony War to see whether maybe another one was about to spark soon, but nothing fit the current political climate we are in. The economy also showed no signs of collapsing, even with the high levels of poverty. I even read about the history of the Marcia Empire to see if maybe something might hint at the peril we are currently facing, but nothing came up that was worthy of attention."

Hearing his explanation, Elizabeth looked down toward the table, her frown deepening. After a momentary pause, she tilted her face back toward Hermes; a resolute look filled with confidence radiated from the gray tints within her enchanting eyes.

"Yesterday… I followed my mother secretly from behind and eavesdropped on a conversation she was having with the Ten Elders on her communication device…"

Hermes' ears pricked open as he tilted his head closer in her direction. Her words were full of nectar, but each one gave off a glimmer of melancholy hidden within.

"I was not entirely able to hear what she was saying since I had to stay far away in order for her not to detect me… The only thing I heard was four words: 'The Seal is weakening'..."

End of Chapter