System in Assassin's Creed

Chapter 104: Chapter 103: ”I’m here...”

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’Nah... I shouldn’t just go around destroying unique Isu structures like this. It felt good punching the outer door, but this one seems more... significant.’ Besides, brute force wasn’t always the most elegant solution.

He examined the slight gap where the two halves of the triangular door met. Placing the fingertips of both hands into the narrow seam, Alaric took a deep breath and focused, pouring a significant amount of chakra into his arms and legs, anchoring his feet firmly on the metallic floor. He gritted his teeth and pulled.

Muscles strained, and the chakra flared visibly around his arms. With an ear-splitting screech of stone grinding against stone, the massive triangular door halves slowly began to slide apart, trying to protest against the manual override.

Alaric kept the pressure constant, sweat beading on his forehead from the sheer physical exertion required even with his enhanced strength. He managed to open a gap just wide enough for him to slip through sideways.

The moment he released the pressure and squeezed through the opening, the heavy stone doors slid shut behind him with a resounding THOOM, placing him into near darkness again.

He found himself on a narrow ledge overlooking a vast, dark chasm. Far below, barely visible, was the glint of water. A familiar setup.

’So, only people who can do the Leap of Faith are supposed to pass this area...’, Alaric mused, peering down into the abyss. He could easily make the jump, but saw no need for the dramatics.

He smirked and simply stepped off the ledge. Instead of plummeting, however, he applied chakra to his feet just before impact, landing lightly on the surface of the underground pool with barely a ripple disturbing the still water.

He walked across the water towards the only visible path forward as he could see a narrow tunnel entrance on the far side of the chasm. Reaching the edge, he saw the path ahead was blocked by another obstacle... a small, rough hole in the rock wall, only large enough for someone to crawl through if they were prone on the ground.

Alaric sighed. He unsealed his Kusanagi sword from the tattoo on his shoulder, the blade appearing in his hand from thin air.

He channeled a small, precise amount of chakra into the blade, making it hum slightly. With a few swift, clean cuts, he carved out a larger opening in the rock wall, easily big enough for him to walk through upright.

The cuts were so precise, slicing through the stone like butter, that the surrounding cave didn’t react... no rumbles, no falling debris. The section of rock he’d cut simply crumbled silently to the ground.

Sealing the Kusanagi again, Alaric walked through the newly widened passage. Almost immediately, he felt the temperature rise dramatically.

The air grew thick and hot, carrying the smell of sulfur and burning rock. HOwever, It didn’t affect him as his innate Phoenix Flame adaptation made him virtually immune to extreme heat, unless it surpassed his own internal fire or that of Emberis’.

He emerged onto another ledge overlooking a pool of bubbling magma far below. A series of cone shaped stepping stones formed a narrow path across the molten rock towards another cave entrance on the far side.

Alaric smirked. He could carefully hop across the stones, but does he need to? His clothes, unfortunately, weren’t as heat-resistant as he was. Even coated in chakra, a direct splash of magma could ruin his expensive clothes.

Although he could apply seals for protection, he decided against it for now. With a powerful leap, he soared across the magma pool, landing neatly on the platform by the far entrance.

This entrance led immediately into a long, steep slide made of the same smooth Isu metal. Not wanting to damage his clothes by sliding conventionally, Alaric skillfully balanced on the soles of his feet, surfing down the long slope like a skier, maintaining perfect control.

’My clothes are far too expensive for this kind of rough treatment,’ he thought wryly as he slid rapidly downwards. ’They’re limited too...’

He reached the bottom, hopping off the end of the slide onto solid ground. He walked forward down another corridor, seeing a narrow, winding path ahead, just wide enough to walk through single file. After navigating the tight passage for a minute, it opened up again onto another ledge.

’Seriously? Another pool of magma?’ Alaric sighed, looking down at the fiery expanse below. ’Well... it is inside a volcano, I suppose...’.

Again, he saw stepping stones, but opted for the direct route, leaping effortlessly across the gap to the pathway on the other side.

’This is almost too easy...’, he thought, shaking his head slightly as he walked along the final pathway. ’All these obstacles designed for Isu or highly trained humans is completely bypassed by me... heh.’

He walked under a natural stone archway... and stopped.

The pathway opened into a truly colossal cavern, far larger than the Vault under the Vatican. Massive, strangely shaped pillars constructed of the Isu metal reached up into the shadowed heights, not appearing to support anything but standing like silent monuments.

The air hummed with a faint, almost imperceptible energy. Strange geometric patterns glowed softly on the walls and pillars.

Alaric looked around, taking in the sheer scale and alien grandeur of the hidden Isu sanctuary. A slow grin spread across his face.

’I’m here...’

(This is basically the entrance that Alexios/Kassandra (Depending on which character you played) went through to meet Pythagoras. I tried to be as accurate as possible hehe)

The air scarce but it hummed with a faint, almost imperceptible energy. Strange geometric patterns glowed softly on the walls and pillars.

’Damn... this place is massive,’ Alaric thought, feeling genuinely overwhelmed by the scale for perhaps the first time on his journey. ’And it’s so dark...’.

He leaped downwards from the pathway, landing softly on the stony floor below, a surface composed of a strange mix of natural rock and smooth Isu materials.

Ahead, stretching across another vast chasm, was a massive and long bridge in the middle of the water surrounding the place, leading towards a huge pyramid floating silently at the far end of the cavern.

Alaric began to walk calmly across the energy bridge with silent steps. He noted sections where the bridge seemed broken or faded. He simply leaped effortlessly over these gaps.

After crossing the bridge, the floating pyramid was actually large from his perspective, its surface covered in intricate, glowing carvings.

Behind it, taking up almost the entire far wall of the cavern, was a large, hexagonal screen or window, displaying a breathtaking, real-time view of the ocean depths outside the island.

Schools of fish darted past, stingrays glided gracefully, and the ghostly remains of ancient, submerged buildings hinted at a forgotten civilization below the waves.

Directly beneath the apex of the floating pyramid, resting on the platform floor, was a large intricately carved Isu pedestal.

Alaric walked calmly towards it, stopping a few feet away. He stared up at the floating pyramid, then at the mesmerizing underwater view through the hexagon window.

’Unbelievable...’, he thought, genuinely awestruck. ’I’ve seen Kami and explored the Vatican Vault... but this... this scale, this technology, this view... I’m speechless...’.

He folded his arms, absorbing the view, the strange beauty and ancient power of the place washing over him.

He stood there for several minutes in silence, until... he smirked, not turning around.

”It’s rude to sneak up on people, you know...”

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