Western Ruins — Dawn of the Third Day
The landscape changed gradually over the two-day journey.
Dense forests gave way to rocky hills. Then to strange formations that didn't seem entirely natural. Angles that were too straight. Surfaces too smooth.
When they finally arrived, Aria understood why the reconnaissance team had used the word "strange."
Half-buried stone structures emerged from the ground like the bones of a giant creature. They weren't buildings in the traditional sense—they were monuments to something that had been and was no longer.
The architecture didn't match anything Aria had seen in this world. Nor what Lilith recognized from her own time.
The columns had wrong proportions. The doors were too tall or too wide. The symbols carved into the walls glowed faintly with blue light that had no visible source.
Aria dismounted from her horse carefully.
"What is this place?"
Lilith was already walking among the ruins with an expression of almost childlike fascination.
