Deep Sea Embers.

Chapter 813 Sand and Fire

The fragmented memories were reshaped suddenly, and the distorted and alienated cognition was restored in an instant, as if the whole world returned in a breath. Fanna heard an illusory roar coming from the depths of her consciousness - in this roar, she once again knew her "self".

The yellow sand in the sky was bombarded by an invisible force and swirled in the wind. Wisps of black smoke emerged out of thin air and reintegrated into Vanna's limbs. She recalled her name, her origins, and how she came here. She recalled the events of the Lost Homeland and her captain.

She turned around and saw the tall and majestic figure standing beside her, staring at her quietly, as if he had been standing there for a long time.

Vanna finally let out a long breath. After a brief moment of confusion and bewilderment, she calmed down and spoke softly as if she was talking to herself: "I feel like I had a very long dream - this is really a long journey."

"Fortunately, you are not completely lost," Duncan smiled. "For a moment, in the depths of the burned history, I could hardly see your shadow."

Fanna felt a little scared, but quickly put that emotion aside. She looked up and around, realizing that the vast desert and the abandoned city in the desert had not disappeared because of her "awakening".

Everything here is not an "illusion" designed for her alone, but something like a "vision" that actually exists at this "node". It is the eternally closed dream of the ever-burning fire, and it is "reality" on another level - she just woke up in the dream of the ancient god, but has not left this huge dream yet.

But as she woke up, things had changed here - the prosperous city that was almost about to appear in her perception retreated into the depths, and the phantoms and sounds in the streets and alleys had completely disappeared. Now, the city has become quiet, among the dead ruins, only those floating lights still silently illuminate the ruins.

"Burned history..." She couldn't help but repeat the captain's words softly. She finally understood the nature of this desert and recalled her own experiences. "But I saw many things here, such as the coronation of the Frost Queen, a certain gathering during the archaeological discoveries in the old city-state era, and the wanted notice of the Sea Mist Fleet. Those should be the parts that were not 'burned'."

After hearing Vanna's words, Duncan just said a few words calmly: "...The warmth is still there."

Vanna's expression changed slightly, and as her eyes quickly became solemn, she recalled what she saw when she first set foot on the Island of Ashes, the burn marks that glowed faintly red between the warm ashes, and the smoke rising from the distance.

"Where are the others?" She shook her head, temporarily suppressed the strong uneasiness in her heart, and asked.

"I have temporarily withdrawn to the ship," Duncan said casually, "The situation at this 'node' is different from the previous one. Perhaps it's because Tarekin's condition is too bad, or perhaps it's because of the special power of 'history' itself. This piece of ash is too dangerous... I came to find you alone."

"I'm sorry to have made you worry." Vanna breathed out, her tone full of apology.

"Let's not talk about this anymore," Duncan waved his hand. "Let's talk about your experience. Can you still recall it? How much do you know about this 'desert' now?"

Fanna quickly sorted out her mood and thoughts. She knew that the captain had not finished what he wanted to do here, so she immediately told him everything she remembered about her experiences in this endless sea of ​​sand - including the voices that had appeared in her ears, the ruins she saw along the way, and the "ding ding ding" sound that always appeared in her ears when the wind and sand rose.

In fact, she could no longer remember the first half of her "journey". When she first fell into this endless sea of ​​sand, her mind was in a state of confusion for a long time, but she still remembered the feeling -

"Forgetfulness and blindness are my strongest impressions of the first half of the journey. It seems that this feeling was deliberately strengthened in my subconscious mind. At that time, I should have realized the changes that had taken place in myself, but I was unable to resist this change. I could only force myself to remember this feeling, hoping to remind myself of the existence of "forgetfulness" later...

"All my clearer memories of the 'journey' began after I forgot my name and origins. It was also after that that I began to see those lost ruins in the desert more frequently, and later, I began to hear those voices.

"This is a process of gradual 'integration', and the most dangerous part of this process is... it has no malicious intent at all. Everything is like the breeze and sunshine, eroding my mind unconsciously. By the time I react, I can no longer leave this city."

When Vanna said this, she couldn't help but let out a sigh. When she recalled her previous decadence and loss, she still felt a little scared - and then she remembered another thing.

"Oh, by the way, before I recalled the Lost Homeland, I met another person, a 'person' who didn't belong here like me," she said quickly, "He said his name was 'Pullman'."

"Pullman?" Duncan's expression changed slightly. "The famous 'mad poet'?"

"Yes, I was in a trance at the time and didn't realize his identity, but now that I have recovered my memory, I can be sure that he is the 'mad poet' recorded in history," Vanna nodded confidently, "He looks the same as recorded in the book, and he is highly nervous and polite. He asked people about what happened here, as if he was looking for a way to leave."

Duncan pondered: "...Could it be another 'shadow' in this desert?"

"Probably not," Vanna shook her head. "He once showed his physical form in front of me. He said he was in a dream again. He also mentioned that he was locked in a basement in reality, and there were 'guards in robes' patrolling his 'cage'. I feel... he came here by mistake."

"Mistakenly entering the dreamland of the ancient god at the end of the world?" Duncan couldn't help but raise his eyebrows. "Even if it's the legendary 'mad poet', this is a bit outrageous..."

He muttered, and then he seemed to be thinking about something: "From what you described, it seems that the things the church uses to accommodate innate psychics. Frost Queen Le Nora mentioned something similar."

"The Frost Queen... Yes! That's it," Vanna reacted instantly and added another detail, "Pullman even mentioned the Frost Queen. Although he didn't say the name explicitly, he should be referring to the Frost Queen - a person who appeared many years after his death and was also imprisoned in a cage..."

Listening to Vanna's story, Duncan frowned deeply, and many speculations about the famous "mad poet" came to his mind, but soon, a sudden cold wind whistled through the night, forcing him to suppress these restless thoughts.

The wind reminded him that there were more important things to do.

"We can discuss the matter of the Mad Poet after we get back. Morris and Lucrecia should be more professional than us in this area. They are true scholars," Duncan said solemnly. "The most urgent task now is to find Tarekkin and find a way to get you out of here safely."

At this moment, just as Duncan finished speaking, a distant sound suddenly came faintly from the depths of the cold wind. It sounded like the knocking of metal and stone, vague and intermittent.

"Ding... Ding Ding..."

"That's the sound!" Vanna reacted instantly and immediately turned to look at Duncan. "I heard this ding-ding sound along the way. Whenever it sounded, there seemed to be some changes in the desert, either new ruins or the sound of talking..."

She stopped abruptly.

The ding-ding sound continued, and then Vanna suddenly noticed something.

The sound no longer seemed to come from all directions. This time, she seemed to be able to determine the direction from which the knocking sound came.

After a brief moment of confusion and judgment, she and the captain raised their hands almost at the same time, pointing to the depths of the city, and said in unison: "...Over here!"

The sound was far away, but the direction was very clear.

The two of them rushed towards the direction where the sound came from without hesitation.

And that voice never disappeared, as if it was deliberately guiding them. The ding-ding-ding sound kept echoing deep in the city, becoming clearer and clearer as time went by.

On the way, Vanna suddenly recalled what the "crazy poet" said to her before he disappeared -

This city is infinite. Outside the city is the desert, and outside the desert is the city... If you walk outward, you will never be able to leave here.

You can't leave by going outwards - so you should go inwards.

The "infinity" of history is a kind of counterintuitive "one-way infinity"!
Whether it is to find the exit to leave here or to find the ancient god who controls history, you should go inside!
She finally figured it out and immediately told the captain beside her about her discovery. After hearing it, Duncan just nodded seriously and then raised his hand to point around.

“The city is disappearing.”

Fanna was startled and looked around.

The city is disappearing into the wind.

The collapsed stone pillars were weathering and disintegrating at a speed visible to the naked eye, and yellow sand was falling from between the high walls and towers. The process was slow at the beginning, but it turned into a collapse of astonishing scale in almost the blink of an eye - the yellow sand was like a waterfall, pouring down from every commanding height in the entire city, and the broken walls were covered by dust, and became part of the sand in the next second.

After just a few breaths, the entire city disappeared from her sight, as if its previous existence was just a dream.

All that was left before her eyes was once again an endless sea of ​​sand.

And the voice that was already so close—

Ding…ding ding…

She looked up and saw a small fire in the darkness.

Just like the small fire she had seen long ago in another dream with only a sea of ​​sand.

And the giant, who had also met in another dream and even walked together with him, that old but tall figure, was sitting next to the fire that seemed like it would be extinguished by the cold wind in the next second. He lowered his head, and used the stones and chisels in his hands to knock and carve the...sand under his feet.

Ding…ding ding…

(End of this chapter)