Legends of Amacia The Caverias Rebellion
Chapter 29: Dreams of Ancient Darkness

Dreams of Ancient Darkness

Thirty-six hours after Hanna’s raid into the Black Fortress, she remained in a deep primal sleep as the Healer continued to work on her wounds. Every part of her remained sedated by the Healer’s mysterious beam, even her mind. The sleep was so deep no dreams intruded on Hanna’s mind. Her blouse and trousers had been replaced with knee-length sweat shorts and tank top blouse shortly after the Healer decontaminated her. The Healer’s healing beam continued to pulse musically with the strange melody played by the Healer as part of the healing operation. A soft snore rose from Hanna as the machine worked on her.

Suddenly, Hanna’s dreamless sleep started filling with bizarre images and dreams. At first, Hanna found herself floating in a warm gray void that felt very safe. Then the void began to cool and ripple. Hanna’s innate sense of danger rose dramatically as the void turned dark and ominous. Looking around in the gathering darkness, Hanna saw shadowy figures flitting around like ghosts. She couldn’t make out their form in the deepening darkness. A chewing, slurping noise started echoing in Hanna’s ears along with menacing growls. An icy fear dropped into Hanna’s heart as she remembered the haunted house where she nearly lost her life as a child. “Whose there?” she called out, shaking with an irrational terror. Her call elicited no legible reply, only the growling, chewing, slurping noise in the darkness as the shadows continued to circle her like vultures.

Without warning, the void flashed, blinding Hanna. When her sight returned, Hanna found herself atop a mile-high cyclopean tower nearly a quarter of a mile across. She stood on the edge of the tower looking out over a ruined city in a sea of black sand. The ruins stretched to the horizon in all directions with only the largest structures peeking out of the giant dunes. In addition to the ruins, Hanna instantly noticed the ancient dead lying all around her: both human and alien of every sort...some of which she’d never seen before. The dead ranged from a dwarfish four and a half feet to giants of over twenty feet in height. All of the dead wore armor of some form and bore strange exotic weaponry. The weapons Hanna saw ranged from medieval type such as swords, axes, clubs, hammers, etc… to what appeared to be advanced projectile energy weapons that included blasters, machine guns, flamethrowers, and rocket launchers. Some of the dead appeared to have been cybernetically enhanced much like Magnus and Nemesis. The scene before Hanna portrayed the intense chaos of hand-to-hand combat on a scale she’d never encountered before. Some of the dead looked as if they were trying to eat their enemies.

“Oh, my Lord have mercy,” Hanna breathed in numbed astonishment. “What is this? I’ve never seen this place before, yet I feel as if I’ve been here before. What is this?” An eerie, ghostly howl echoed through the air from the ruins around her, shaking her from her astonishment. “Oh, boy,” she murmured, urgently searching the area for the source of the noise. “I’m in a world of shit here. I know it.” Seeing she was completely unarmed with just a tank-top shirt and knee-length shorts on, Hanna started searching for a useable weapon. Her innate sense of danger pegged off the scale as she felt an evil so ancient penetrate her mind that she doubted her own sanity. “I must replace a weapon,” she muttered moving briskly across the tower’s roof searching the ancient dead around her. Every weapon she saw had been broken or was corroded beyond use. The moment she touched them, they disintegrated into dust, as did the skeleton who held it.

After moving a hundred yards along the rooftop, Hanna heard a deep growling rumble from the south that stopped her in her tracks. Turning to the noise, Hanna’s mouth fell open at what confronted her. Off towards the edge of the city to the south floated an alien city of such magnitude it defied Hanna’s comprehension. She estimated the floating city to be twenty miles in diameter and five miles in height. A glowing crystal cone protruded down from its base while a pyramidal structure with a crystal pyramid capstone the size of the Great Pyramid of Giza soared over the rest of the city. The crystal capstone appeared to look like an eye shining in the dark. A cyclopean wall two miles high surrounded the city above the crystal cone. Hanna saw innumerable weapons turrets in the wall with every barrel pointed right at her. Above the wall and turrets, a translucent energy shield covered everything in an impenetrable dome. Hanna stared in numbed amazement at the most alien edifice she’d ever encountered. It appeared as if some intelligence had literally ripped a city up by the very ground it stood on and made it float in the sky. An icy fear dropped into Hanna’s heart as she stared at the alien monstrosity. By instinct, she knew the floating city harbored an evil darker than what controlled her before her mutation.

Dropping to her knees amidst the ancient dead, Hanna continued to stare at the floating city as if she were a deer in the headlights. Sweat beaded on her brow as she trembled to her core. As she watched the cyclopean floating city, she became aware that it was slowly approaching her. The very ground trembled and air shimmered at its approach. “What is heaven’s name is that?” Hanna finally whispered, totally engrossed in the spectacle.

“That is an Etherian battle cruiser commandeered by the Dark Gods,” a deep raspy voice answered from behind Hanna.

The voice startled Hanna and she wheeled around to see who had spoken to her. Tripping on the bones around her, she fell on her butt while turning to face the voice. Her face went ashen as she looked up, seeing a giant skeleton in oriental-style armor wielding a six-foot alien sword with a six-inch wide blade. It stood twelve feet in height as it looked down at Hanna with glowing red lights in its eye sockets. Holding the blade in low position with the point away from Hanna, it stared at her for a moment. At first, panic hit Hanna and she shuffled away from the skeletal giant. It held up its bony hand in a peace gesture, saying, “Do not be afraid, Miss Beowulf. I am not here to harm you. But you are in grave danger. You must leave this place quickly and replace Cerrelius. Only he can provide the answers you seek.”

Hanna suddenly stopped clambering away from the skeletal giant and looked it in the face. Sensing no inherent hostility or evil coming from the skeletal warrior, Hanna’s courage rose in the face of the gathering darkness coming from the alien warship on the horizon. “What are you?” she asked hesitantly.

The skeletal warrior approached and offered its bony hand to Hanna. “Just one of the ancient dead you see around you,” it stated cryptically.

Hanna took the skeletal hand of the warrior and it heaved her to her feet as if she were a child. “Thank you,” she said gratefully, stepping back a couple of steps from the creature. “Do you know what’s going on here? I’m completely in the dark about what’s happening here.”

The skeletal giant chuckled in such a manner it sent chills down Hanna’s spine. “If you only knew,” it declared in an ominous tone. “You must be patient, little sister. Only when you discover your true destiny will you be able to see and make sense of your life. You have seen and done things few mortals ever get to experience. Don’t doubt yourself or your God. He will show you the way to your destiny. When the time is right, He will lead you to the Ragnaros and then you’ll be ready once again to take on the Dark Lords head on. Until then, keep the faith and walk the path of the righteous. Protect your charges and never let your guard down. Find Cerrelius. He can help you make sense of the pieces of your life that baffle you.” It reached into its belt and pulled a dagger with a three-foot blade on it. Strange glowing runes decorated the dagger’s blade. Handing the giant dagger to Hanna, it ordered, “Take this. It will protect you from the darkness.”

“Thank you,” Hanna replied, taking the blade. “You honor me, my friend.”

“Thanks are not needed, little sister,” the skeletal giant declared. “You and I are the same. I am the beginning. You are the end. Together, we have walked the uncharted paths of time and space and seen the Source. Find the Source and purge the Darkness from it. Reunite the flow of time and space and free the Prisoners of FATE. Only with them will you be able to restore balance to the multiverse. Now go, little sister. Flee this place before the Dark Lords replace you.”

Hanna stared in great puzzlement. “What do you mean?” she asked as the skeletal giant turned to walk away. “What’s the Source and who are the Prisoners of FATE?”

The skeletal giant hesitated, turning back to Hanna. “Unlock your mind and you will have your answers, little sister,” it instructed cryptically. “Go to Cerrelius and remember who you are. Now go. The Dark Ones are about to open the Nexus. You must escape before they do.”

“I don’t understand,” Hanna balked as the skeletal giant started walking away again.

“I know you don’t,” the skeletal giant replied over his shoulder. “But in time you will. Have patience. The Ancient of Days will reveal everything in His good time. Now please, flee this place.”

Hearing the skeletal giant’s urgency in its last comment, Hanna decided not to press the issue. “Where do I replace this Cerrelius?” she asked.

“Solve the Riddle of Drakonia and you will replace him,” the skeletal giant stated, picking up its pace as it walked away.

“Wait,” Hanna called out. “What do they call you, my friend?”

The skeletal giant again hesitated. Turning around, it hefted its massive sword that now glowed brilliantly with ancient runes shining on the blade. It pointed the blade at Hanna, declaring, “I am the Apocalypse. The end is declared in the beginning. Now go, Miss Beowulf. You are needed in the world of the living!” The skeletal giant only known as Apocalypse turned its blade downward and stabbed the tower beneath its feet. A coronal flash erupted from the tower, completely blinding Hanna. She shrieked, turning away from the flash.

Darkness swallowed Hanna again along with the sensation of falling. As she fell in the dark, a reptilian voice of great power, intelligence, and antiquity spoke to Hanna in a gentle tone. “Don’t be afraid, Miss Beowulf,” it cooed. “You are not alone in this fight. Come to me when the time is right and we’ll unravel your destiny so you can have the peace you so covet.”

“Who are you?” Hanna cried to the voice as her fall accelerated.

A colossal golden draken head thirty feet across appeared in the darkness to Hanna’s left. She gasped in fearful amazement, staring at apparition. It seemed to smile, showing a mouthful of eighteen-inch teeth. “You know who I am,” the draken head answered. “Yet you don’t remember me. The Darkness and FATE have robbed you of your memories. Remember who you are. Only when you remember who you are will you comprehend your true destiny.”

“Am I dead?” Hanna asked in a near panic, feeling that she’d lost her mind. “Is that why I keep seeing you and ancient battlefields?”

“No, little sister,” the dragon head replied. “But you do need to wake up. I know your elemental power is troubling to you. Don’t let it trouble you. You’re just reawakening to your destiny. Come to me in the draken homeland when you’re ready to know the truth of your existence. Now wake up.” The golden draken head vanished in a flash of light.

Hanna suddenly gasped and awoke, bolting to a sitting position on the table of the Healer. She looked around wildly, panting for breath while sweat soaked her tank top shirt and sweat shorts. Her vision blurred with her eyes refusing to focus. Hanna could only make out shapes along with the healing beam that continued to bathe her in its strong relaxing glow. Covering her eyes with her left hand while propping herself with her right arm, Hanna moaned, “What the fuck was that? I must be going nuts.” She laid back down on the table with a groan, feeling what little strength she had failing. Drowsiness swamped her as the healing beam pulsed musically around her. “Man, I’m getting tired of these fucking nightmares,” she whispered, falling back into a deep slumber.

Caverias, Gideon, Jarret, and Bannon stood around Hanna as she lay on the table. A deep sigh escaped Caverias’ lips as he touched her on the head in a gentle, fatherly manner. “Sleep, dear Hanna,” Caverias cooed in her ear. “The psychic dream can wait for now. You have much to do before you can replace the great draken guardian, Cerrelius. Now sleep and be rejuvenated. You’re going to need your strength for your restoration. Come, my friends. Lay your hands on our little sister and strengthen her in the Lord’s strength.” Gideon, Jarret, and Bannon laid their hands on Hanna with Caverias, strengthening her.

“Why does she keep having these strange dreams of Cerrelius?” Jarret asked. “And who or what is this Apocalypse? Is it a danger to her or the remnant?”

“I understand your concern,” Caverias stated, looking down into Hanna’s sleeping face. “But it’s not our place to question the Lord’s will. What I can tell you is the dreams of Cerrelius are not dangerous to her. The Lord is allowing these psychic contacts with Cerrelius to spur her into action. Whether you realize it or not, Hanna has traveled the infinite paths of time and space during her lifetime, connecting her with the ancient past of this planet. However, she doesn’t remember any of it. We can’t force her to remember what she participated in during the 1st Age. She must uncover it for herself. The dreams are just goads to push her to accept her destiny.”

“That’s deep,” Bannon admitted. “You know what’s going on here, don’t you Caverias?”

“I do,” Caverias declared. “But I’m not cleared to reveal it to you or anyone before Hanna can uncover it for herself. That order came directly from the Throne itself. All I can say right now is that the time is not right for her to make contact with Cerrelius. As for this skeletal Apocalypse in the dream, take comfort in the knowledge he’s not a danger to Hanna or the remnant. He’s merely a goad to push Hanna down the right path. When the time is right, the identity of the skeletal Apocalypse and the resting place of the most holy Ragnaros will be made clear. But for now, neither are essential to her present mission. Does that information settle your spirit?”

“Yes,” Jarret replied. “I just keep seeing these dreams of Cerrelius and how it plagues Hanna’s mind. I just wanted to be reassured that it wasn’t of the Darkness.”

“I assure you it isn’t,” Caverias stated bluntly. “Hanna doesn’t truly understand her place yet, but that will soon change. When she discovers and accepts her destiny, then everything she’s searched for will become clear. All we need to do is make sure she doesn’t stumble in the process. The Darkness of this age is much more treacherous than what we dealt with in the 1st Age. We must fortify her and the rest of the remnant so they can deal with this rising dark tide.”

“And we will,” Gideon chimed, patting Hanna on the hand. “It’s what we’re here for. Even though you’re not allowed to directly answer our questions, it does help to hear that these events are being directed from above.”

“Do not fear, my friends,” Caverias replied. “This is only the beginning. We shall see the Lord’s wonders.”