Chapter 44: Echoes From A Distant Past

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June 2027, Selos Forest.

While the Lomor Empire was facing the threat of the Solat Alliance the Earth's powers were busy with many operations.

"Professor Rossi, I'm glad you were able to come here." Greeted general Coppelli.

"Thank you general Coppelli. I'm glad to help in any way I can." He answered.

"I called you in this place because since we conquered the other side of the portal we could be able to study its nature better." Explained the general.

"If we understand the technology behind it we could colonize distant stars like many people already said." Continued Coppelli.

"So you called me because I teach Relativity in university?"

"Yes, and also because you have been in contact with the other world and you also learned its history from the princess when she was in Rome."

"I have a theory about that: the princess explained that 4000 years ago there was a great war that created a very long winter. It could be that there was a very advanced civilization on this planet that is responsible for the magic thing and for the costruction of the portal." Explained the scientist.

"I bet that every nation here would want soldiers capable of using magic so the UN and the global powers decided that anything important would have to be shared between every nation of Earth to prevent WW3." Explained the general.

"Ha, I almost forgot, your friends from the first expedition beyond the portal will come here soon. We still have to study the biology of the fantasy creatures present here and the glottology (study of language) of the languages present here."

"We have killed many trolls, giants, wyverns and even vampires with regenerative abilities that could be useful to study for medical reasons." Stated the general.

"We will also call a team of archaeologists to study eventual ruins of that "ancient civilizations". Ended the general

Some days later, somewhere in the Selos forest.

"Mr. Gennari, we have found something." Said an archaeologist to the historian.

"It's a trap door that is camouflaged with the local vegetation. It also seems that it was already opened recently." Explained the archaeologist.

"Thank you Roberto. I will ask the general to set up a team to explore what is inside." 

Then the general gathered a team of soldiers and scientist from the coalition and got it ready to venture in the mystery.

Some hours later...

The team opened the trap door and was greeted by darkness so a soldier used a bengala to light it.

After that, a stairway was revealed and the team started using it to explore to facility.

"My magnetic-field detector is going crazy. It's like the material of the trap door isolated this structure from the outside world." Explained a japanese engineer.

Note: Japan did not sent any military personnel beyond the portal because of its constitution but sent  some scientific/medical personnel instead.

Some minutes later...

The team continued exploring the inside finding many things that you would not expect to find in a middle age/renaissance world (even a magic one).

"It feels like a Earth's scientific lab with some futuristic elements in it." Stated a russian scientist while wandering in the metallic corridors of the facility.

"It confirms my theory even more." Thought Giovanni.

Then the team arrived in front of metallic door that seemed to require a password in order to be opened.

"Look! It seems that someone managed to breach the door after many attempts." Stated a US Marine.

"Da, it seems that violent force was used to open it." Said a russian engineer.

Then the team continued walking while the soldiers were ready to shoot for any potential threat and, after a very long journey in what seemed to be a real maze, they reached the core of the structure and the origin of the strong magnetic field.

Many computers and ruined blueprints were present there along with a strange machine with many cables and what seemed to be a giant Tesla coil.

(Image not mine)

The strange machine was also linked to giant tubes and seemed to be running right now emitting strong noises

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The strange machine was also linked to giant tubes and seemed to be running right now emitting strong noises.

"Could it be the machine responsible for the wormhole that connected Earth with this planet?" Thought Giovanni.

"Physicst, engineers, ... I will let you to have fun with what it's inside this room but the others will have to continue exploring the structure in order to find other things." Stated colonel Richard White of the US Army and in charge of leading this expedition.

Then some soldiers along with many of the physicists/engineers of the team stayed there to study the machine while the others ventured in other rooms.

Some hours later...

"Colonel, we have found something else." Stated a chinese soldier on the radio.

"Roger, guide us to your position." 

Then the soldier together with the rest of the scientific personnel reached what seemed to be a medical lab with capsules containing a strange fluid like the ones used to clone people in sci-fi movies.

This room also contained many computers and ruined blueprints.

"It seems that a computer is still working." Stated an engineer.

"I might be able to make it work despite the keyboard having weird characters."

Some time later...

"It is working colonel." Stated the engineer.

Then the computer turned on and started playing a tape in a unknow language.

The tape showed a scared human that was wearing a lab coat. Many explosions could also be heard in the distance.

"We will have to understand the language or nothing will come out from the tape." Stated the colonel.

"I think that this room may be the key to understand magic and this weird planet better." 

"Maybe some of the locals could help us. Maybe some ancient "mage"?"

"But I'm not sure if calling this thing magic is correct anymore..." He finished.

Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.

Arthur C. Clarke.




















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