Part II

Day 555

To complete what I have written yesterday. Before entering a cave I was afraid that it would be gone before I reached it. Also my steps were careful so it took me quite an amount of time to get inside. Now the creepers were moved so it seemed like the full-length curtains lifted away to invite me. Then it quickly changed into a narrow, long, and twisting corridor. The silence and darkness were uncomfortable but luckily I didn't have problems with spaces like that, which made me an even better candidate. The roughness of the rock made my fingers bleed, but this kind of sacrifice wasn't enough. I was getting ready to give even more.

I lost track of time, but the reward was waiting there for me. Suddenly the corridor turned into the hall and my eyes were attacked with light coming from torches ordered at equal distances. The moment passed before my eyes got used to sudden change and I could look around freely. The pillars made impressions like I was stepping in interesting architecture design not underground structure in the middle of the cave. I was so frustrated that my equipment didn’t work there and all I had were good, old drawing methods I was never really master of. However I got praised a lot for the cleanliness of my documentation, instead of making it artsy, like most of my colleagues tend to do.

Even though I tried to stay silent and got closer to the wall, where I noticed a lot of small niches, my steps sounded so loud. I felt like I was disturbing some sacred space, so I sat under the closest pillar and tried to enjoy the moment and my greatness. Having something firm behind my back let me finally relax a bit, I started giggling and couldn’t stop for a while. I feel sleepy, it seems it was too much even for me, however weirdly this place also is giving me an impression of safety.

Day 556

The impression was misleading after all, as another nightmare happened. This time eyes gathered around me and were looking at me intensively, like I was some kind of museum piece. I got up tired but ready to work. I didn't know if there actually was another day, but… I couldn't let myself doubt in anything, so after a not so pleasant morning and determination recharged I started.

The niches, which caught my attention earlier, were small and contained a lot of different objects. Carved nicely and in equal distance, it reminded me of showing the interesting collection off. So the function of the niches would be actually a display. One per object, one per… When I was standing in front of the wall, looking at all the simple jewelry and figurines, it was mostly these kinds of things gathered, the thrill went down my spine, that my interpretation should be more ominous. The intuition was telling me I should think in categories like cemetery. After that I went along the wall, seeing more advanced objects with every step. Weapons, books, religious symbols, watches, and on the other side of the hall even phones and wallets. I had to use the pillar stability not to fall myself, when I realised the answer for the order is the passing time. And there was still a lot of time left for the future.

I had to mention three more things about the hall. One - there is something reminding me of the round door with some mechanical system at the end of it. Two - under every taken niche there is something engraved, my intuition is telling me, these are numbers. Three - the corridor I used to get here is suddenly gone, so I might as well die here…

Whoever finds this, please make sure to have my name remembered for discovering this place.

Day ?

I have no idea how many hours have passed, is it another day or not. Maybe even more than just a day. My mind was getting foggy and my body got weakened as I didn’t come here with a lot of supplies. However after a really brief moment of almost giving up I decided to leave behind myself the proof of my genius. I focused on decoding the numeral system used in the hall and that kept me busy until now.

The system was based on ten digits and the numbers under niches were changing every four. The way it was written reminded me a bit of cuneiform writing, however it seemed simple, and based on a combination of strokes. I gave up on trying to assign them to the Arabic numerals, which could be just impossible without any specific references. I was wondering, if I got here in a leap year is it the reason why anomalies are happening and the numbers here are just leap years in their calendar?

After all that mental exertion I sat in the front of the door. How many trials I can have to open it? Is there a trap, which kills you immediately after you choose the wrong code? I would rather assume that I have only one chance, so what combination would be the right one? Soon I realised that I have done everything I could. Death is already waiting for me, so as well I might take it. Why not? I am gonna use the number which should be under the next niche, according to my intuition.

Forgive me world that I couldn’t give you more!

D..

The hell with counting days of expedition! It doesn’t matter anymore! I have found a lost civilization! The lost civilization! I, William Wallace Junior have found a freaking lost civilization! And after some time my superior linguistic skills let me communicate with those people. I couldn’t write for a while, so I don’t know where to start, but everything must be noted, as this journal already has enormous scientific value.

Anyway, maybe from the moment I thought I was going to die, in reality I had to faint. When I woke up, I was lying comfortably in bed and on the table next to me were standing two bowls, one with water and second with weirdly looking fruits. I didn’t care what it was, hunger and thirst were killing me, so it could do it as well, but at least I would die with a full stomach.

I wasn't looking my best then, dirty, unshaved, tired and with juice dripping from my beard when the most beautiful woman went to the room. Slender body in a material, tight, short dress. Long, straight, dark hair cascading down her back. Two thin braids, one each side of her face. And a smile, a wide and kind one, which melted my heart right away. She was talking to me and gave me a sort of towel to clean myself up, while looking at me with curiosity. I decided that it was the best time for me to show my communication skills. With simple gestures I introduced myself and asked for the woman's name. She gave me an answer - Ava and later I found out she was the highest priestess of the One.

It took me a few days to fully recover and I couldn’t wait to finally leave the room to see what I had discovered. Ava was visiting me, spending hours with me and teaching me her language. My talent was really useful, but pronunciation was killing me, but at least it made my beautiful teacher laugh a lot. Surprised by the openness to a stranger I was wondering if it would be that easy. I could have everything served on the silver platter. Just gather material, go back and become the hero of the scientific world. We could also give them a lot in exchange. I knew there was a risk that it included viruses and other diseases they might already be protected from. That problem could be solved later.

I didn’t know what to expect. Probably more like a time capsule and people for which I would seem like a god or some kind of magician myself, showing them glimpses of the world outside. It was kind of disappointing that they are not any backward, no surprises, no making impressions. I was looking at a nicely developed big city, surrounded by nature. So beautiful that my first thought was “paradise”. And surprisingly it was not a closed area and I was seeing the azure of the sky and feeling the warmth of the sun.

Whatever the One actually did, or rather I mean what happened in the past, good job. Ava took me for a walk, showing me around. People were smiling at me and waving. I felt like a celebrity and was really proud when I could show off what I have already learned. The houses were built in small clusters, keeping the families together. Constructed a bit above ground, buildings seemed light and vulnerable to vagaries of the weather. Can this place have bad weather at all? Only the tower, not very tall, but still tall enough to dominate the surroundings. I wanted to ask what is the function of it, but got distracted by the fact they could use the sun as a power resource and somehow communicate with each other via a device I couldn’t scratch beneath the surface yet.

They invited me everywhere. I was working on the field and helping build new houses. They even let me take part in hunting, however my intellectual soul was not made for this. I was spending hours watching and learning their craft. That’s the thing most surprising and interesting for me, that the flow of this place was based both on old tradition and technological solutions, which seemed almost modern for me. I thought that harmony like that was not possible and development must go simultaneously in all areas of life.

However after four years they still didn’t clue me in the most fascinating area - religion and beliefs. And I was hoping to learn more, as the cycle happens to end. Of course I was asking Ava about this matter and about the items in the hall. She told me that it was just things people left behind and even though her people didn’t understand what these are, they wanted to have something similar. Curiosity led to all those inventions I witnessed. However once I caught Ava on being a bit nostalgic so I tried to use that occasion to gather some knowledge about the One.

It happened that he was not the only one in their pantheon, but when they asked for help this small, not so important member was always ready to help them. The rest ignored them so after protecting them, they decided to stay only loyal to the one who cared about them. The names of the others were already forgotten, like the first name of the One. However the answer I got when I was wondering out loud what he is like sounded mysteriously. “He is what he must be.” I couldn't get anything more from her, so I tried from the other side. Instead of asking directly about her god I questioned how she became the highest priestess. She was chosen by the One himself, which made her incredibly proud. Every young miss wanted to get this honour, and the criterias weren't defined. But this position was also correlated with great responsibility. Only Ava and a few more priestess could see and talk with the One, but she was the only one who could convey his wishes to the others. It seemed that this civilization was a theocratic one. There was also one more task only the highest priestess could take - caring about the garden on the tower’s rooftop. The only place where the One was actually spending time, if he decided to descend to the ‘ground’, as he never actually goes except this roof. I had to ask if there is the smallest possibility for me to see it. Her face changed quickly to serious and sad, she whispered: “I hope you will never do.”