After sitting on a long succession of trains and trams, K finally reached Earthen District 1. The Districts towards Kaexuan were all underground, owing to the humongous mountain range standing in the path between Athenos and Kaexuan. While rumours abounded that in fact, there was a secret Alpine District, if one decided to scale the mountains, the sheer size of the range had made scaling each and every mountain an impossibility.
K walked into the district, but turned back immediately. This was because Kaexuan was both a mine, as well as a attacking route. Stone dust clotted the air, decreasing K’s health with every breath he took. To his greater fear, it seemed the damage increased as time progressed. Staying inside without protection for extended periods of time could lead to death.
K bought a mask, but to wear it, he had to unequip his golden faceplate. K removed the golden plate, putting it back into his inventory, and equipped the mask. Apparently, it came with ten filters, and these filters had to be replaced every day, if one intended to work without coming to harm in the caves. K decided to buy another ten filters. Although the price was exorbitant, he had too much money to even care.
K entered District 1. It was vastly different from the Urban Districts, where everything was sleek steel and blue paint. Here, it was a dark area with oppressively low ceilings. After all, it was still undergoing excavation. Districts changed constantly, as per the movements of the people. Some even suspected that some caves from Kaexuan led to other Hubs.
Kaexuan was famous for its relative lack of foes, but not for its safety. This was because it was a place where deadly landslides occurred weekly, if not daily. Still, K managed to make it all the way to Kaexuan, scaling rock walls, and crawling through small crevices.
The thing was, that non-player Hubs did not work the same was as player governed Hubs did. They were often conquered, but they were mostly treated like boss raids. They recuperated, and the dead within would respawn in a day or two. They could not truly be captured, and hence, were much safer than player battlefields. But the truth was, there were less people going to Kaexuan than to any other Hub in the game. The reason was unclear, because of the fact that almost no one went there, and that rumours about it were rampant, but one of the largest myths was that any player who went there, were staying there forever.
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K, however, had decided that the rumours were bollocks, and that he should go see it for himself.
Which was why he pushed open the black iron gates of Kaexuan, taking in a breath of the cool air that rose from within, and entered its forbidding stone walls without a hint of hesitation. He surveyed his surroundings, forming a minimap from what he saw. The minimap was a piece of technology that automatically logged down movements to form solid maps, and K was sweeping his eyes over the place to get a good read.
But there was nothing to read.
All he saw in the creeping darkness was a large expanse of stone, stretching out as far as the eye could see. It was endless, unyielding, and for the first time, K didn’t know what to do. He turned, relieved to see the cast iron gate behind him. Registering the piece of black iron behind him as a marker, K walked straight into the expanse.
At his own expense.
The wheels of Kaexuan started turning, and the machinations of the frozen stone creaked into life. With a creaking that shook the entire land, a god woke, and a large, dust covered eye opened.
Author's Note: The Kaexuan Arc is kickstarting. This is going to be great. Tbh, I came up with this idea just today. XD