What is my reason for traveling so far for so long—was the question that nagged me most often throughout my journeys.
You see, people travel for a myriad of reasons. I knew quite a few kind folks who just wanted to be out in the world rather than stay stuck in their homes following a mundane script of a life, while some others wandered aimlessly in an attempt to discover themselves and a purpose to live by. Both of those types often discovered parts of themselves and the world that they wouldn’t have otherwise, as well as happened upon people and places they realized they were meant to be with.
And, of course, there are those who endlessly put one foot in front of the other so as to escape. Escape from what? Everything ranging from a side of themselves they couldn’t stand to acknowledge all the way to the law.
For the longest time did I try to examine myself, to find the me that made it all happen. Was I doing it for the sake of it? Yes, travelling through the unknown was great fun and exhilaration—despite being topped with a whipped cream of danger from time to time—but there was more to it.
No, I don’t think I didn’t know myself enough to have to journey until my feet bled through my soles. Or at least, that wasn’t nearly my main motivation, because there were definitely a few questions hidden deep within that I couldn’t answer.
And yes, I did have a life I no longer wanted on my mind—a history I so longed to wipe clean—but that also couldn’t have been it…it just couldn’t. Not with how easily I forgot it at times. That past of mine so infrequently came to mind when I settled upon a new destination to visit that I surely got over it.
“This is as far as I go. From here, you are on your own.”
The voice from a few meters ahead of me had an undertone of disrespect, displeasure, and resolution. My guide through the dense jungle was still salty from earlier when I convinced hi…no, I promised myself that I’d be completely honest in this log: from when I threatened him to continue.
With my machete, I hacked away at a few lengthy branches and vines that hung in my way before nodding to the guide and stepping past him. I paused for a moment, my back still turned to him, listening for the crunching of vegetation from his heavy boots. He was gone.
I sighed in relief at the fact that the man didn’t suddenly grow a conscience and turn back to kill me—which is actually kind of what I expected to happen when I chose this place as my next target. I wouldn’t even blame the man if he did. Of course, I’d kill him for trying to harm me, but I really didn’t expect to so easily get one of the locals to lead me to their historical and sacred temple that seemed to have been standing for thousands of years. I guess that’s just the power of money.
I continued the short climb to the top of the hill. When I arrived at the peak, I could almost hear the spirits and angels singing from the Heavens above as I laid my eyes on the majestic scene before me.
Just a few steps away lied a steep drop. A ninety-degree drop, to be specific. Several kilometers down, at the bottom, sat a glorious, cerulean lake that spanned to beyond what I could observe. The body of water formed a perfect square cut into the jungle, as though the gods had used a giant cookie cutter to take a big chunk out of the land, then poured water within the hole they left behind—which is probably how they did it.
However, that beautiful, mystic lake was not what I travelled so far to see. Not even an afterthought.
The wind whistled and howled as it sent my long hair everywhere and attempted to dry out my eyes, but I refused to blink. I stood there, fixated on the gargantuan stone temple floating above the center of the lake, my greed flaring, begging my legs to continue onward.
This all might have begun because I yearned for adventure, introspection, and escape, but it was not why I continued.
Before locating and stepping onto one of the many giant chain links locking the temple to the earth, I clasped my hands together and gave a quick prayer to the gods—as I always did before a raid—thanking them for adding so much mystery and intrigue to the world with their bizarre creations, and hoping that I might one day be present for when they add another natural wonder to the world. Plus, I apologized in case they didn’t like how I entered and plundered their creations. Even if they did, it wasn’t like they made it known. So, I’m not doing anything wrong?
Then, I took off my backpack and removed the dozens of magical relics I stole from other Divine Ruins. When I equipped the various bracelets, necklaces, hats, blades, statuettes, wristbands, hairpins, and rings, they began to glow and emit the aura unique to Relics. They all gave me varying abilities that would help me survive the traps and enemies within the floating temple, or anything else, really. The only reason I didn’t always have them equipped was that the aura would give away my identity to all near me as someone who raided Divine Ruins—something illegal in most places, as everyone feared the gods despite how little they actually interacted with the world.
“Let’s do this!” I shouted to the wind, before stepping onto that chain.
