n

n

nMuch to the party's disappointment, Geth holed himself up in a corner as soon as he'd found space in their chambers. They couldn't help but think that the behavior was strange.

n

"Do you think he'll stay this way until the meeting?

" Sindri asked.

nPeter looked at the man and shrugged,

"I wouldn't be able to go so long without eating.

"

n

"Just leave him be. We have other things to focus on if we want to go to the city. Let's tell the others everything that we know so far,

" Jack gestured to the others to follow him.

nGeth was left alone inside of the stone room, sitting cross-legged in a corner. The place became deathly silent.

nMeanwhile, inside of Geth's mental sphere...

n

"So you're saying that Earth was once part of some massive super planet?

" Geth asked.

nAlbus nodded,

"That's right. There was once a time where Humans, Demons, Goblins, and many other races thrived!

nSome of the more powerful races were even said to travel amongst the stars! At least, this is according to some of the Elven knowledge that was passed down.

"

n

"So what you showed me... Is it from the past?

" Geth questioned.

n

"No,

" Albus shook his head,

"The memories that I was able to show you were a little over three centuries into the future.

"

n

"It would probably be best if you let me start from the beginning. Though I will say that there are still bits of my memories that are missing.

"

nGeth nodded and waited patiently for Albus to gather his thoughts.

n

"I'll start with the Elven history.

"

nCough

n

"Long ago, when the planet was whole, the different Races were constantly at war. Skirmishes broke out regularly over resources.

nThere was one resource that every Race hoarded, and that was Mana. At that time, Mana only existed in a liquid form that hid deep in the planet's crust.

nIt was a fantastic energy source, not unlike the crude oil that Humans fought over on Earth. Individuals who drank this liquid would become stronger, faster, or gain special abilities.

nThere were very few Races that could handle the transformation that the Mana caused. You experienced it not long after you woke up.

"

nGeth thought back to the pain he endured when his body had been ripped apart by the Mana. He shuddered to think about all species going through the same in the hopes of gaining power.

n

"There were many races who were left wishing they could harness this power. In every Race, there were some individuals who were an exception.

nTake the Goblins, for instance. They were a feeble race, yet most now have the ability to control Mana.

nThis is thanks to those special few who could endure the pain. As the next generations were born from them, it was found that they had less trouble consuming the Mana.

"

nGeth came to a realization,

"So at first, it was plentiful. As more and more generations of the Races were born, it must have become scarce.

"

n

"That is correct,

" Albus nodded,

"And as it became scarce, the occasional skirmishes turned into large-scale wars. Alliances were formed amongst many of the different Races until five major coalitions were born.

nThe leaders of these alliances were the Dragons, Demons, Beasts, Gods, and the Elves.

"

n

"Gods?

" Geth couldn't help but interrupt.

n

"They were more like monsters. They had once been a beautiful humanoid Race, though there weren't many of them.

nWhen the first of them consumed the liquid Mana, it was found that they had the highest aptitude of all the Races. It didn't take long for the mere hundred of them to partake.

nOver the years, their bodies started to become deformed. Along with the deformations, their powers grew.

nEventually, they had such incredible capabilities that they could take on entire armies individually. If it weren't for their shortage of numbers and their low reproduction rate, they could have taken the world for themselves.

nThese 'Gods' were eventually almost wiped out by the other races. The last of them used their strength to create a Formation that would affect the entire planet.

nThe world was split into one hundred and one minor planets across multiple realities. Each planet housed one of the more significant Races and many weaker species.

"

nAlbus paused for a moment to let the information sink in. Geth looked up and asked a question.

n

"That Formation... It broke apart, didn't it?

"

n

"Yes. Over many thousands of years, the Formation weakened.

nIt was actually predicted by the earliest generations of Humans while they still had knowledge of magic. I will say that they were a few years off, but it wasn't a terrible guess.

nIt became known as the rapture, an apocalypse, the end of the world, or any number of other names as Humans forgot where they came from.

"

n

"Are you talking about the Mayan calendar?

" Geth asked doubtfully.

n

"The very same. Even the different pyramids built across the world acted to slow the deterioration of the Formation!

"

nGeth sat back again, marveling at what he was being told. It was all so surreal.

n

"So, what about the Gods?

" He couldn't imagine facing something so powerful that it could create different dimensions.

n

"That's something that we never found out. Devastation and mayhem occurred when the Formation broke, and all of the planets merged.

nMountains grew into the clouds, monsters tore through much of the population, Dragons could be seen flying through the air.

nHumans weren't prepared. Most of my ancestors were enslaved or tortured, along with many other Races.

nNo one knows what happened to the Gods. They never reappeared.

nThe planet reverted to one hundred times the size of the Earth. That is half the size of the world from the past.

nOur best guesses were that the Gods remained separated from the other Races even after the Formation broke down.

"

nAlbus sighed and shook his head.

n

"Anyway, now that you know about the world's history, I can tell you about what happened in the future.

"

n