The group in the car reached the front of the colossal ancient structure, radiating a mild but undeniable might—a testament to its bygone position at the heart of ancient worshippers who once communed with the heavens in its holy of holies.

  “Let’s get down first.”

  At Skylar’s instruction, the group alighted from their loyal and steadfast companion—the car—and followed behind him toward one of the numerous units of square pillar pairs supporting a square lintel: a trilithon. These trilithons were arranged in rings, forming concentric circles around the consecrated center of the ruin—the sacred core. Specifically, they moved closer to the square pillar nearest to them.

  “I remember now. It’s just like the Stonehenge thing I read about, but these stone blocks are way bigger and they have these glyph things on them. They probably served some purpose in the past,” Skylar muttered.

  He began rubbing his hand along the white, inscribed square pillar, its height stretching for several kilometers—no different from the others of its kind—while carefully scrutinizing the figures and symbols inscribed upon it.

  Lady Cat, standing beside him, looked up and asked with a soft meow, "Have you dealt with something like this before, at the place you come from?"

  “No. It’s just that I’ve seen something similar, but in a very terrible condition. I don’t think it had glyphs on it—just plain stone, I think,” Skylar replied.

  He then proceeded to study the glyphs on other blocks, moving from one pillar to the next.

  After a couple of hours examining the glyphs on the blocks of the outer ring, Skylar returned to the others. He found Mr. Rabbit leaning against one of the square pillars. The little guy—quiet as usual—floated a few meters above the ground in front of the same pillar, studying its patterns. Raftelia was also examining the pillar on one side of Mr. Rabbit, while Lady Cat rested above them all, curled atop the lintel supported by the pillar Mr. Rabbit leaned on and another, directly beneath the dead sky.

  I’ll have to solve this fast and get out of here… I can barely suppress my hunger. Unlike these guys, I’m already reaching my limit. Solving this will probably take even more time—and I’ll have to endure it longer…

  He concluded his thoughts and turned his focus to the group.

  “I think we should do something first—like an experiment,” Skylar said as he approached. At his words, the group wore expressions that clearly said go on.

  “We pick four random cardinal directions and try to find an exit by testing all of them. But it’ll probably take a lot of time.”

  He paused, scanning their faces. “What do you guys think?”

  "My mate, can’t we do this?" Lady Cat meowed. As she drew everyone’s attention, she floated directly in front of Skylar’s chest, waiting for him to hold her—which he did. She continued, "To save time, four of us will leave simultaneously in those cardinal directions, and if one of us doesn’t return, the others can conclude that the direction the missing fellow took is an exit."

  I already thought of that, Skylar smiled inwardly. Then, with a knowing grin, he faced Lady Cat and mouthed confidently, “But we only have one car.”

  “???”

  At his words, the others looked at him in puzzlement—Mr. Rabbit in particular, who shot him a contemptuous glare. Lady Cat replied a moment later.

  "Who says we’re taking the car?" she meowed.

  "The car is very slow. Going on foot will be faster," Raftelia added.

  At their undisguised and obvious reaction to his ignorance, Skylar froze, his eyes widening in shock.

  Fuck! That speed is considered slow? I have to maintain hyperfocus just to see things clearly outside the car… How powerful are these guys, really?

  He looked at each of their faces, his gaze finally settling on the little guy whose face was turned toward him—but whose eyes weren’t.

  And you too? You act like a weakling, yet you think we’ve been moving like a snail? Fuck… what about that serpent? What if that bitch is chasing us right now? How fast is “fast” in this world, anyway?

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  “Okay,” Skylar said sullenly after a long contemplation, his voice carrying his true feelings—and a hint of sarcasm. “I’ll wait here inside the very slow guy. You all pick the directions and try them out.”

  He gently placed Lady Cat on the ground and headed toward the car glowing faintly in one corner beneath a massive, shining crystal tree.

  Lady Cat watched him as he was about to enter. She meowed softly, "My mate, don’t be bothered. This great me is certain we’ll soon stand together above this world."

  After her remark, the others gave Skylar looks that suggested they agreed with her.

  Lady Cat then turned to them. "Let’s not waste time," she meowed. "Big guy, take north. Little guy, take south. Raftelia, take east. This great me will take west. Let’s be fast."

  Immediately after her instructions, she and the other heavyweights of the group shot off like fired bullets, accelerating into blurs in their respective directions. Skylar alone remained behind, waiting for good news inside the car, which silently—and figuratively—spectated the massive stone structure: the Stonehenge.

  At the same time, on the barren plain—along a straight path leading to the ancient ruin several thousand kilometers ahead—beneath glorious heavenly bodies illuminating the land like dawn, a scene unfolded.

  From up close, and with minimal hyperfocus, a creature appeared as a green blur flying toward the ruin, resembling a spring contracting and relaxing at intervals. Behind it slithered what looked like a massive body of fluid, moving at incredible speed, leaving behind towering shockwaves that expanded and traveled in the opposite direction.

  “That didn’t work,” Skylar muttered.

  He leaned against the crystal tree as Mr. Rabbit—the last of the group’s powerhouses—returned to join him and the others.

  That means no matter which direction you take, you’ll always be reflected and sent back to your starting point… It’s just like formations in eastern literature. Given the unique location, the center must be where the mystery lies—if there is one.

  Lady Cat interrupted his thoughts. “How do you think some fellows were able to escape this place?” she meowed.

  She leapt down gracefully from atop the car beside the crystal tree and landed on Skylar’s bare chest.

  Catching her safely and nestling her there, Skylar replied, “We’ll find out very soon—at the center.”

  He disconnected from the tree and gestured. “Let’s go.”

  Holding Lady Cat, he led the way as the others followed closely behind. Together, they walked into the ancient structure of white stone, still radiating a shadow of its former might and glory.

  There are a hundred and eight rings in this portal-like structure… If I recall correctly, the outermost ring should contain more than ten thousand of these portals. Seeing it now, they’re enormous—like they were made for colossal giants to pass through…

  As he examined the structure’s components, Skylar continued contemplating while the group advanced toward the center.

  “The blocks here aren’t inscribed—they’re carved,” he muttered, running his hand along the carved glyphs on one of the white stone columns forming part of the final trilithon ring encircling the sacred center.

  "They stand out," Lady Cat meowed thoughtfully. "Then they must serve a special purpose."

  She slipped from Skylar’s embrace and sat at his feet, examining the carved glyphs near the base of the pillar.

  After several minutes of study—joined by Raftelia at another angle—Skylar led the group into the sacred heart of the ruin, which the concentric trilithon rings seemed to guard and watch over.

  Inside the structure, the ground was reddish-black, and above them was an unexpected dome—an inner heaven. It appeared worn and damaged, resembling a child’s smeared painting on a rusted dome supported by the lintels of the innermost ring marking its boundary.

  Skylar fixed his gaze on the dome, which resembled a sky whose smeared clouds were packed with carved figures just beneath its surface.

  This inner heaven must have been an important clue… but it’s badly damaged. Except for that headless figure in a long gown, holding something… What is it holding? It’s smeared—I can’t see it clearly. It looks like a rod supporting something…

  "Sky, the only thing here is an altar," Raftelia said, drawing his attention to the center of the sacred space.

  There stood the only object within—a towering, massive golden altar.

  After a brief moment, Skylar approached it and climbed onto its surface, which stood about three meters taller than him. Lady Cat followed and stood beside him as he studied the engraved glyphs on the altar.

  “Pretty sis, how much do you know about glyphs?” Skylar asked Raftelia below, while scrutinizing the familiar symbols, patterns, and figures. The glyphs were divided into quadrants, their number matching the trilithons forming the innermost ring.

  A hundred and eight sections… just like the hundred and eight portals surrounding this place. It’s too obvious to be coincidence…

  "I know almost nothing," Raftelia replied after a moment. "But I do know about lunar inscriptions—and a little about runes. They’re all interrelated."

  She continued examining the engravings along the altar’s cylindrical base.

  “What’s the difference between the three?” Skylar asked.

  Before Raftelia could answer, Lady Cat did.

  "Glyphs are symbols and figures," she meowed. "Lunar inscriptions are the curved patterns. And runes are the peculiar markings you find on tools and weapons, especially."

  Raftelia chimed in. "They’re all called cosmic patterns—or cosmic codes. According to ancient history, there are more than just those three types."

  “Is something called a formation or an array also a cosmic code?” Skylar interjected as he shifted position atop the golden altar.