Astartes of the Bear School

Chapter 1812, page 1784: The Seal
"She used me as a messenger to deliver the message to someone in the future?"

Cassandra stumbled a bit, but after Lann sorted out the timeline and correspondences for them, she still managed to figure out the hidden meaning behind the words on her own.

“Not a messenger,” Lann shrugged. “A more appropriate analogy is that she treated you as the letter itself.”

“But…” Cassandra said hesitantly, “but it doesn’t seem like a big deal. I’ve delivered messages for people many times, it’s not a big deal.”

“There’s really nothing wrong with that; it’s just passively passing on information,” Lan En nodded. “But as I said, her problem is that she doesn’t consider you one of her own at all.”

"She used you as a conduit for information, but in the process, she never said a single word that you might have any doubts or feelings."

"She concluded that you couldn't understand what she was saying, and then she started chatting with the actual recipient of the message without any restraint!"

“This…” Cassandra glanced tentatively at Lann, “Something’s not right?”

She really couldn't understand the problem.

“In my experience,” Lann nodded, “something is very wrong.”

"Your experience again?" Alexios retorted expressionlessly. "How so? You were also used as information and passed on to other places?"

Lan En denied it outright: "No, I didn't."

The next sentence made Alexios's previously forced stern face break down.

"But as a recipient of information, I have received messages that transcend time and the world."

“…” Alexios was silent for a moment, then uttered a Greek phrase, “Malaka.”

The information Lan En was referring to was from a long time ago, when he first went to that Victorian city, Yharnam, which was shrouded in perpetual darkness.

At that time, he was engaged in a bitter struggle against the "foolish spider that webs time," the superior Rom.

Then, at that moment, he had no choice but to have Mentos cooperate with him and initiate [Memory Dive] on the spot. He borrowed the tactical thinking and battlefield experience of a fully modified Proto-Forged Space Marine to achieve victory.

Today, the figure of that original Space Marine seems quite ordinary compared to Lann's strength, technology, and other aspects.

That experience, however, remained vivid in Lan En's memory.

At that time, the original Space Marine went to pay homage to a high sage of the Mechanicus named Dominius Belisarius Caul.

The High Priest of Mechanics, using the original Space Marine as a vessel, greeted Lann and 'gifted' him the enhancement surgical procedures he needed at the time.

During that time, in the [Deep Memory], Lann could clearly tell from the original Space Marine's senses that this Great Sage of the Cult of Mechanics probably didn't have more than two human bodies left.

Intricate or powerful mechanical parts were filled into his body, and over countless years of modification, his body was stretched to the size of a tank or armored vehicle!
Just by getting close, you can smell the engine oil on his body, as well as the stench from the ionization of air by his surrounding energy.

His thoughts, expressed through his words, were almost like those of his body—cold and mechanical.

Even so, at the end of the [Memory Deep Dive] that Lann remembered, Belisarius Caul gave the original Space Marine a few lukewarm explanations.

If we're talking about cold-bloodedness and almost inhumanity, then Belisarius Caul is undoubtedly far superior to Althea, whose comments are full of inflection, justice, and compassion.

But even someone as cold as Belisarius Caul could casually explain a few words to the Protocast Space Marines who were the carriers of information, while Althea simply ignored Cassandra, who couldn't understand.

When a group of people are chatting, and suddenly they start communicating in their dialect, only one outsider is revealed. This is a blatant act of exclusion and exclusion.

Moreover, Althea did not use the relatively rudimentary method of 'dialect' when she was communicating with that person.

Instead, they used information asymmetry and cognitive gaps to make it sound like Cassandra couldn't understand them at all.

The rejection and indifference in this situation were only noticeable to someone like Lan En, who had experienced similar situations before.

Cassandra closed her eyes after Lann explained and read Althea's last message to her, but opened them again a short while later, her eyes sharp and resolute as always.

The woman had just asked Lan En for another reason, and after receiving the reason, she didn't hesitate and immediately abandoned her illusory dream of harmony, deciding to face the bleak and malicious reality.

Now, from Kassandra's perspective, the Isu woman Althea, who spoke so sweetly and seemed so approachable, is likely a liar and an enemy.

“But what should I do?” Although she had mentally prepared herself, Cassandra still felt a headache coming on. “Pythagoras has entrusted his mission to me! I must complete it!”

“We will finish it,” Lann said, raising his hand. “But we cannot finish it the way Althea wants us to.”

"Ok?"

The falconer was still puzzled when he looked up and met Lan En's relaxed gaze.

The Witcher was holding his chin with two fingers, his beautiful smile captivating.

"To the people of this world, the civilization and technology of the Isu are indeed like myths. Premature contact will only lead them astray and to their doom. But... I mean, but..."

"This entire lost city of the Isu civilization, the legendary Atlantis. Isn't it a bit of a waste to only consider the acceptance level of the humans in this world?" Then, Cassandra looked at the Witcher with a hint of realization.

The gate to the Isu ruins then made several more sounds of stones scraping together as it opened.

Shortly after, Cassandra emerged from inside with nothing in her hands.

They did indeed seal Atlantis with the Staff of Hermes, just as Pythagoras had wished.

However, Cassandra did not take the scepter that granted immortality with her; instead, she left it in the entrance hall of Atlantis.

The reason why Atlantis was sealed even after Lan En said those things was because they discovered the 'proper' way to open the gate.

After the four Isu artifacts were placed, their power began to fill the energy system of the ruined city that had been abandoned for tens of thousands of years.

That is why Atlantis's knowledge base was activated earlier.

Lann and Alexios discovered a gate in the Atlantis lobby that might lead to the city behind.

Several patterns are engraved on each side of the gate.

However, the two of them, or more precisely, Lan En, immediately discovered the information hidden in these seemingly random patterns.

'Ittila, Colgas, Metin'.

This was the sculptor's fearful answer when Alexios went to the Valley of Olympia to interrogate Phidias.

At the time, Demos thought these were three meaningless syllables without beginning or end.

However, Phidias's study of ancient ruins focused primarily on patterns and sculptures.

Each of these three syllables has a corresponding image. First, the images were created, and then the pronunciation and order were determined.

At that time, based on Phidias's research, after Lann read out the three syllables, three of the many patterns on both sides of the gate lit up in turn, and the gate was opened.

Compared to directly 'snapping the key' with the Staff of Hermes, this password-based entry method might be the more legitimate way.

But the fact that Phidias's research findings could be traced back to the entrance passage of Atlantis... is intriguing enough in itself.

“I haven’t asked you this before,” Lann turned to Alexios and asked, “Why did you go to Phidias in the first place?”

Alexios's face also turned visibly ugly.

He's a bit reckless these days, but he's not stupid. He seems to have remembered something.

"As the target who was not assassinated, the Church never gave up monitoring Phidias. That's how his research ended up in their hands. And when I was reading his research notes, I muttered them aloud, and the artifact beside me suddenly reacted."

"I think his research must be very valuable, which is why it was done during the Olympics..."

Alexios had a vague sense that something was wrong.

Phidias's research findings turned out to be the key to opening the gates of Atlantis.

If no one had stopped him back then, when he was still Demos, the sculptor would probably have died a terrible death.

His own sins, his chances of returning to his family... all become even slimmer. Dying at his sister's hands or committing suicide are both more likely outcomes for him.

And those Isu artifacts that would react simply by hearing the commands developed by Phidias... these clues just don't seem right now!
It's one thing for the main gate to be able to receive the opening command, but why do the other artifacts, which were forged from fragments of artifacts unearthed by modern humans, respond to the commands?

It all seems like it was all planned!

Regardless, Cassandra did not keep the Staff of Hermes in her possession, but instead placed it in the entrance hall of Atlantis.

While sealing away Atlantis, they also obtained the password to open it.

Althea, the lost city of Atlantis, the Isu civilization technology within the city... all these things are placed beneath the rock layers and lava, ready to be explored at any time.

On Thera, after a flurry of activity, it was already sunset.

The Aegean sun transformed into an orange-red orb, suspended above the sea, illuminating the island's ruins in the same orange hue.

The waves wash over the fine sand, the sound of the waves seemingly unchanged for millennia.

On the deck of the Adrestia, Triss, Herodotus, Barnabas, and many crew members waved to the three of them, beckoning them to set sail on the Aegean Sea.
-
In 2018, the waves of the Aegean Sea remained unchanged.

The Altay 2 ocean-going freighter entered the Mediterranean Sea from the Atlantic Ocean via the Strait of Gibraltar.

One night, while passing by the island of Thera, a small boat was lowered from the cargo ship, and Leila Hassan and her team members were on board.

(End of this chapter)