Journey through Hellscape

[GhostSHTR 1008]

Journey through Hellscape

 

Sketch of Hellscape c.1859

 

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“GODANI have mercy upon me a sinner” I stated before reading the strange paper. As I began to read this ancient paper the text began to swirl my eyes and bring a small headache that appeared in my forehead which sharply escalates and crescendos into a piercing, splitting migraine. Before I could feel myself slipping away the tension in my legs eased, the dryness of the air fades, the burdens of my body begin to fade, as I slip away from all perception and the world around me. I felt Solitude, Peace, and Tranquility; within this limbo, I could only see the page. 

Firstly, I recognize the script is alien and eludes me, the very words mingling together and twisting to avoid understanding yet they evoke meaning in my being all the same. Secondly, I quickly began to grasp what these drawings speak of and as I poured over the text seemed to leave the page and land directly in my mind. It showed me worlds upon worlds, the blackness between the stars and the realms that abound, laws which govern them and laws which bend, celestial alignments, the philosophies of sacred geometry and the associations between worlds, and the unfathomable depth of the cosmos yet every speck can be measured and recorded.

 As it droned on and on it not only did I read these ideas but I grasped them; I knew them. In the moment of grayness when I faded away I felt as if I have always known these things, the page merely reminded me. And then, in that same instant, I was surrounded by warmth and shadow.

I woke up in a ditch full of a dusty substance, I picked up a handful and smelled it, Coughing I recognized the smell. It was a familiar smell from days of my childhood, it was sulfur and Ash. I got up and looked around the orange skies that now surrounded me, “Where am I” I would ask myself coughing on the inhuman smell in the air. Grabbing my cane I began my trek towards I believe north, throughout my trek I kept my prayer beads tightly wrapped around my hand and the GOD’s Prayer on my tongue; 

 

“GODANI have mercy upon me a Sinner, GODANI has mercy upon me a Sinner”. 

 

As I walked I scanned the horizon, I could see shadows in the distance of large monsters walking about, the Shadows looked like the monsters that I saw back in Arcas. They looked…they looked like the Inferi, the ones who killed many of my kinsmen all those years ago, while I was in awe of the shadows I hear snarls near me, I dove towards the nearest covering. I thought it was a bush, I took a closer look at the ‘bush’ only to notice it was a pile of bones, bones from descendants. As the snarls grew louder my heart pounded harder, thought my fear was true and the danger was close, I continue to repeat my prayer 

 

“GODANI have mercy upon me a Sinner”

 

I calmed myself and looked past the chipped and ridged bones to see what I feared. Inferi, the same ones I found during my boyhood, the same ones who destroyed Korvassa in Acras. I remembered everything, the fires, the smell of burnt flesh, the bodies of children and men, and most of all the darkness. The Voidal feeling only one being can produce, Ilbees the Arch-daemon; The inferi passed without noticing me thankfully. I immediately got up and tried to find a way back to the Abbey. I was still quite confused, that Page I picked up must have taken me here but why? Why would a paper from a holy site send me to his hellscape? Now wasn’t the time for debate. What I needed to do was find a way back to Almaris; as I hobbled through this underworld I got a better view of where I was. Magma, ash, sulfur, rotten flesh, the screams of horror and pain; is this a glimpse of what the Void is? Continuing my walk towards the unknown I soon felt like something was watching me, I would keep my trek looking over my shoulder every few minutes until I reached a cliff.

 As I stood on the cliff I could see giant bat-like creatures flying over a vast sea of molten lava and obsidian. A Roar emerged from behind me, I quickly turned around to see a massive worm-like creature slivering towards me, I would begin to run as fast as I could with my bad leg. The Worm quickly sped up, coming closer to me every second, I whispered a prayer to myself before jumping off the cliff into a sea of magma. I closed my eyes as I prepared myself for the 7 skies. Instead of the burning of lava upon my face, I felt the hard, cold dirt ground. I’d slowly get up from the ground and squint into the sky, the warm sunlight hitting my face, I’d slowly roll into the sitting position so I may get my bearings. My Cane would be by my side and the paper would be neatly folded inside my cossack, I have no idea how it ended up there but it was there, as soon as I felt grounded I slowly got up and looked around. I found a path towards the main road, I began to follow it until I go to the city. The City of San Luciano, How I ended up on the other side of the world is a mystery but there is one thing I must do. I need to find Brother Markos, hopefully, he’ll understand what happened.

 

 

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[esterhase 164]

"as a proud canonist i dont believe in nonsenses such as a hell. only the seven skies, the ground below, and the void without. god does sinners all they deserve by giving them an eternal nothing. cheers." says brother micawber the judite priest as he totters around the swiss cheesed infernum of whatever the last map was called.