The discovery was made almost three months after the expedition returned from the ruins.
By then, the excitement surrounding the ancient civilization had only grown larger.
Entire research institutions had been established specifically to study the recovered records. Universities competed for access to translated texts. Historians spent sleepless nights debating interpretations. Scholars traveled across Dominion hoping to contribute something to the effort.
The ancient city had become one of humanity's greatest historical discoveries.
And yet, despite months of research, no one had found the true beginning.
The records stretched back thousands of years, but every civilization had to begin somewhere.
There should have been founding records.
Origin accounts.
Early historical references.
Something.
Instead, the earliest surviving documents always seemed to start after the civilization was already established.
It was as if the first chapter of an enormous book had been torn away.
Nobody understood why.
Until one researcher found it.
The discovery happened in one of the deepest archive sections recovered from the ruins.
A chamber that had remained sealed even after the initial expedition.
Months of excavation had finally allowed historians to access it.
At first, nobody thought much of the contents.
Several damaged stone tablets.
A few fragmented records.
Nothing extraordinary.
Then someone started translating them.
And everything changed.
The moment the translation reached Novaris, the researcher responsible immediately requested a meeting with the Historical Council.
Then the Historical Council requested a meeting with the High Council.
Then the High Council requested Kaien's presence.
That alone was enough to tell him something significant had happened.
Because historians generally avoided interacting with politicians whenever possible.
If they were demanding immediate meetings, then something extraordinary had been discovered.
The council chamber was unusually crowded when Kaien arrived.
Historians filled nearly half the room.
Researchers occupied the remaining seats.
Several of them looked exhausted.
Others looked excited.
A few looked completely stunned.
None of those reactions reassured Kaien.
The lead researcher stood immediately after Kaien entered.
"Director Veyr."
Kaien nodded.
"You found something."
It wasn't a question.
The woman swallowed nervously.
"Yes."
The central display activated.
Ancient symbols appeared throughout the chamber.
Translations followed moments later.
Thousands of years old.
Among the oldest writings ever discovered.
The researcher took a deep breath.
Then began speaking.
"We believe we've identified the earliest surviving historical records from the civilization."
The room became silent.
Everyone listened carefully.
"The documents appear to describe events immediately following a great war."
Several historians nodded.
That part wasn't unusual.
Most ancient civilizations recorded conflicts.
Then the researcher continued.
"A war referred to repeatedly by the same name."
The translation appeared above the display.
Kurukshetra.
Kaien froze.
The room didn't understand his reaction.
Most people present simply looked confused.
The word meant little to them.
Several historians recognized it from old mythology.
Nothing more.
But Kaien knew.
His memories immediately stirred.
Fragments from another life.
Another age.
Another existence.
Karna.
For a moment he simply stared at the display.
The researcher continued speaking.
"The records repeatedly reference a devastating conflict involving nearly every major kingdom of the era."
New translations appeared.
Descriptions.
Names.
Locations.
Historical accounts.
The similarities became impossible to ignore.
The Kurukshetra War.
The destruction of dynasties.
The collapse of ancient kingdoms.
The end of entire bloodlines.
The room gradually realized what the records were implying.
One historian stood abruptly.
"You're saying these documents describe the Mahabharata?"
The researcher hesitated.
Then nodded.
"Not as mythology."
The chamber became silent.
"As history."
No one spoke for several seconds.
The implications were staggering.
For generations, the Mahabharata had existed somewhere between mythology and history.
A story.
A legend.
A cultural memory.
Something impossible to fully verify.
Now there were records.
Ancient records.
Predating almost every known civilization.
And according to those records—
the ancient city they discovered was founded after the Kurukshetra War.
Kaien remained silent.
Listening.
Watching.
Thinking.
Because while everyone else processed the historical implications—
he was processing something entirely different.
If the records were genuine—
then the war he remembered as Karna wasn't merely part of one world's history.
It happened here too.
Or something incredibly similar.
The realization unsettled him more than he expected.
Throughout his lives, he had always assumed each world was separate.
Different realities.
Different histories.
Different outcomes.
Yet somehow—
the same story appeared again.
The researcher activated another translation.
This one was significantly damaged.
Fragments only.
Yet the surviving sections remained readable.
"After the Great War, the world entered an age of mourning."
More text appeared.
"The kings were dead."
"The heroes were gone."
"The bloodlines of many houses ended."
"The survivors gathered and sought to build a future beyond war."
The chamber remained completely silent.
Those words felt haunting.
Because they sounded familiar.
Too familiar.
Kaien thought about Dominion.
The final war.
The reconstruction.
The rebuilding.
Humanity had done exactly the same thing.
A terrible conflict.
Unimaginable losses.
Then survivors trying to create something better afterward.
History repeated itself.
Again and again.
Across civilizations.
Across ages.
Across worlds.
Another historian spoke.
"If these records are accurate..."
His voice carried disbelief.
"Then this civilization was founded by survivors."
The researcher nodded.
"That's our current conclusion."
Not conquerors.
Not kings.
Not empires.
Survivors.
People who experienced catastrophe and decided to build something better.
For some reason that moved Kaien more than anything else.
Because it reminded him of everyone who rebuilt Dominion.
Ordinary people.
Workers.
Farmers.
Teachers.
Engineers.
Families.
The true builders of civilization were almost never the people history celebrated.
They were the people who continued living afterward.
The meeting lasted several hours.
Debates erupted.
Questions multiplied.
Theories emerged.
Yet one conclusion remained consistent.
The ancient civilization appeared to trace its origins directly to the aftermath of Kurukshetra.
The implications would keep historians occupied for decades.
Perhaps centuries.
When the meeting finally ended, Kaien left quietly.
He didn't return home immediately.
Instead, he walked through Novaris alone.
The city was alive.
As always.
People filled the streets.
Businesses remained open.
Children played in public parks.
Life continued moving forward.
Yet his thoughts remained elsewhere.
Karna.
For years those memories had become less painful.
Less immediate.
Still present.
But distant.
Today they felt closer again.
Not because of battle.
Not because of tragedy.
Because of what came afterward.
The records weren't celebrating the war.
They weren't glorifying heroes.
They weren't praising victory.
They focused on rebuilding.
On survivors.
On creating a future.
And perhaps that was the true lesson of Kurukshetra.
Not who won.
Not who lost.
But what happened after.
Eventually he found himself standing near one of Novaris's higher districts overlooking the city.
The sunset painted everything gold.
Buildings reflected warm light.
The streets below seemed almost peaceful beyond description.
Nyra and Lyss eventually found him there.
Neither asked how.
They always did.
Lyss stepped beside him first.
Nyra followed shortly afterward.
"You've been thinking."
Nyra's observation earned a small smile from Kaien.
"I usually am."
"Not like this."
That was true.
For several moments nobody spoke.
The wind moved gently through the evening air.
The city stretched endlessly before them.
Finally Lyss asked the question.
"What did the discovery make you realize?"
Kaien considered his answer carefully.
Then he looked toward the horizon.
"That civilizations are surprisingly similar."
The twins waited.
Listening.
Kaien continued quietly.
"They suffer."
"They fight."
"They lose people."
The memories of Karna.
The memories of Aditya.
The memories of Arin.
The memories of Kaien.
All intertwined.
"But eventually..."
His gaze remained fixed on the city.
"They rebuild."
The answer sounded simple.
Perhaps too simple.
Yet standing there, watching humanity thrive five years after the end of another world-ending war—
it felt true.
The ancient civilization began after Kurukshetra.
Dominion rose after the Final War.
Countless societies throughout history emerged from the ashes of something terrible.
Perhaps that was humanity's greatest strength.
Not power.
Not intelligence.
Not technology.
Resilience.
The ability to begin again.
As darkness slowly settled over Novaris and the city lights illuminated the streets below, Kaien found himself wondering about the survivors who founded that ancient civilization.
What dreams did they have?
What future were they trying to build?
Did they know people would remember them thousands of years later?
Probably not.
Yet somehow their efforts endured.
And as Kaien stood between Nyra and Lyss watching over the city he helped rebuild, he couldn't help thinking that maybe every civilization left behind more than ruins.
Maybe what truly survived wasn't stone.
Or records.
Or monuments.
Maybe what survived was hope.
Passed from one age to the next.
From one generation to another.
From one civilization to the one that followed.
A legacy far older than history itself.