Chapter 965: The Ones We Missed
What drew the Voyagers from the depths of the cosmos to this planet was something called the “Disordered Background Pulse”—a term likely known only to the Voyagers themselves, a kind of technical jargon. But as for its origin, Gawain quickly pieced it together.
It was the massive arrival of gods and the ensuing wars on this very world.
“When they came to this planet, the entire world was already beyond salvation. Bloodthirsty gods, swept up in fanatical cults, had turned the entire planet into a vast sacrificial ground. Ordinary people were like cattle awaiting slaughter. Talrond seemed to be the only ‘pure land,’ but even that was only because it sealed its borders and the gods there had become fixed, unable to move freely.
“Faced with this, the Voyagers chose the most drastic form of intervention… they ‘dismantled’ the out-of-control divine structures on this planet.”
The Dragon God shook their head slightly at this point.
“Truth be told, I know very little about the Voyagers. I don’t know what methods they use on other worlds, or if they have other ways to help civilizations break free from the ‘Divine Shackles.’ All I know is that on this planet, they used the most direct and effective method: outright assault.
“Back then, the gods frequently interfered with the mortal realm. Their divine power repeatedly pierced the barrier between the mortal world and the divine realms, blurring the boundaries. The skies above the planet were riddled with ‘deep realm voids’ and rifts that never fully closed. The Voyagers launched fierce attacks on all the divine realms through these passages.
“To this day, many images of those battles remain in my memory… It was a terrifying war. The impression the Voyagers left on me was not just their power, but their decisiveness and ruthlessness. They seemed to be carrying out some sacred mission, swiftly destroying every being on this planet who claimed to be a ‘god.’ They also left behind numerous monitoring and protective devices—hidden away or placed far from inhabited areas. At first, we thought they were preparing to fully occupy the planet, but they didn’t. After completing their work, they left without a trace of regret.
“Along with them went most of the surviving races on the planet, whose populations had been drastically reduced—everyone except the dragons of Talrond.”
The Dragon God paused here, and Gawain immediately asked, “So they didn’t attack the dragons’ gods… because, as you said before, the dragons and their gods were ‘bound together,’ making it impossible for the Voyagers to intervene?”
“…That’s just our own speculation,” the Dragon God said softly after a two-second silence. “The Voyagers left no explanation. Perhaps they refrained out of respect for the strong bond between dragons and their gods. Or maybe they judged the dragons unworthy of joining their ‘fleet.’ Or perhaps… they only destroy gods who have gone mad or become bloodthirsty, and the dragons of Talrond didn’t meet that criterion.
“But whatever the reason, the result was the same…
“The Voyagers left without taking the dragons. Talrond’s civilization was left behind on this scarred planet. The dragons became the sole ‘rulers’—like kings locked onto their thrones, watching over a wasteland in loneliness and sorrow. One million eight hundred seventy thousand years have passed. What the dragons gained, what they lost… no one can say anymore.”
This ancient history slowly unveiled its mysterious veil to Gawain through the Dragon God’s narration. Yet the passage of such immense time had eroded the truth, leaving countless weathered scars in the record. Despite hearing so much, Gawain still harbored doubts—about the Voyagers, about the dragons’ gods, about that long-lost ancient era…
He believed there were many more details hidden in that lost history, details that could explain the Voyagers and the dragons’ current state. But the Dragon God did not tell him—perhaps deliberately withholding for some reason, or maybe even this ancient deity did not know all the details.
After all, the Dragon God was not fully one of the dragons’ “gods,” but rather a… patchwork successor born from the great upheaval among the gods.
After a long pause, Gawain broke the silence again. “Then what about that battlefield inside the Eternal Storm…”
“That came later, many years after the Voyagers left,” the Dragon God said calmly. “After the Voyagers departed, Talrond went through a brief period of chaos and shock. But the dragons still had to survive, even though the world was devastated… They stepped beyond their sealed gates like scavengers, exploring this abandoned planet. They found countless ruins and a few small shelters built by remnants unwilling to leave the planet. But under those harsh conditions, none of those shelters survived…
“Many years passed after that, and the world remained barren. The dragons temporarily gave up searching for life elsewhere and focused all their energy on developing Talrond itself. The arrival of the Voyagers seemed to open a window for the dragons—a window to the outside world. It awakened the curiosity and spirit of exploration in many dragons, and…”
Suddenly, the howling and rumbling outside the temple grew louder, even more intense than before. Gawain instinctively rose from his seat, wanting to check outside, but the Dragon God’s voice stopped him: “Don’t mind it. It’s just… the wind.”
Gawain looked at the Dragon God’s eyes—deep as an abyss—and then sat back down, exhaling. He spoke on the Dragon God’s behalf: “Driven by curiosity and the desire to explore, the dragons developed rapidly, but they ran into the backlash of the Divine Shackles. Unable to understand the chains’ patterns or find a way to break free, it ultimately led to the war deep within the Eternal Storm.”
The Dragon God nodded gently.
Outside, the howling and rumbling gradually subsided.
“You mentioned the Voyagers took most of the survivors from this planet, except the dragons?” Gawain asked, watching the commotion outside and glancing at Enya. “Why did they do that?”
“To be honest, the dragons spent many years speculating about the Voyagers’ motives—from noble purposes to sinister conspiracies—but no logical explanation fits. In the few limited contacts between the dragons and the Voyagers, the Voyagers never spoke much about their home or traditions, nor did they explain the purpose of their long voyage—also called the ‘Voyage of Departure.’ They seem to have been traveling the stars for hundreds of thousands of years, maybe longer, with multiple fleets roaming among the stars. They left traces on many planets, but once they left a world, they rarely returned…
“As for taking survivors… they have done this more than once. They have a vast ‘fleet,’ and deep within it are many groups who boarded during the voyage—some refugees from other worlds, some civilizations who joined willingly, and some just hitching a ride. It’s said the oldest members have traveled with the Voyagers for tens of thousands of years. Unfortunately, the dragons never met those ‘passengers’ from other realms—they stayed in space, building the unfinished ‘Firmament,’ and never landed on this planet.”
The Dragon God’s soft, low voice slowly trailed off. Her gaze seemed to drift away, her eyes becoming vacant—perhaps lost in ancient memories, mourning what the dragons had missed, or simply contemplating the future of races and civilizations as a god. Whatever the reason, Gawain did not interrupt.
He himself was immersed in a strange reverie, stirred by thoughts he had never entertained before—about the mysteries of the starry sea and the world.
This world… no, this universe was not silent. Even with periodic magical tides threatening it, even with the divine shackles’ rules, among those twinkling stars, the flame of civilization still drifted.
The vast Voyager fleet, civilizations from other worlds, expeditions across the starry sea… When he awoke in an ancient tomb, facing a fallen magical “medieval” era, he could never have imagined hearing such concepts in this world. Yet today, they unfolded before him, laid out as history.
Most incredible of all was the “person” telling this story… a “god.”
The journey to Talrond was truly worthwhile.
Amid this faint thrill, Gawain finally broke the silence: “Will the Voyagers really never come back?”
“The dragons have waited over a million years,” Enya said calmly. “The Voyagers have never returned. The things they left among the stars continue to operate automatically, slowly decaying as they do. This has probably happened on other planets more than once—I think the Voyagers didn’t leave those devices to one day reclaim this insignificant rock. Though I don’t know their purpose, it’s likely they really won’t come back.”
A sudden pang of melancholy welled up in Gawain’s heart.
He seemed to understand why the dragons once carried out the plan to cultivate the “Reverse Tide,” why they sought to use the Voyagers’ legacy to build another powerful mortal civilization.
But some things… once missed, are truly lost. Blind, ineffective “remedies” are ultimately futile.
The Dragon God looked at him, and after a moment, smiled faintly. “Are you longing for the stars, Wanderer from Beyond?”
“For many years, I’ve been among the stars,” Gawain said with a sigh. “To me, this planet… is simply not spacious enough.”
“Is that so…” The Dragon God said ambiguously, then suddenly let out a long breath and slowly stood. “It’s been a pleasant conversation… Let’s end it here, Wanderer from Beyond. It’s getting late.”
“Indeed, we’ve talked for quite a while,” Gawain stood as well, pulling out his mechanical watch to check the time. He glanced toward the temple’s entrance, but just as he was about to leave, he stopped and looked back at the Dragon God. “By the way, if you don’t mind—I have one more question.”
“Go ahead.”
“The Black Trap… the phenomenon that causes many civilizations to suddenly collapse after reaching their peak—what exactly is it?”
The Dragon God was silent for a few seconds, then spoke slowly: “Do you remember the battlefield deep within the Eternal Storm?”
Gawain nodded. “Of course.”
After a brief pause, the Dragon God’s voice entered his ears—gentle but solemn: “At the final moment when the gods merged and the shackles solidified, the dragons chose to give up their freedom. They bowed their heads, becoming my nourishment and slaves—so they stopped at the edge of the Black Trap, but one foot was already caught inside.
“And those who refused to bow faced a dead end.”
“Facing the invincible ‘God of Gods,’ one is utterly annihilated by the accumulated faith of their own civilization spanning millennia—along with all the culture, legends, myths, and reverence their civilization has created. The stronger the civilization, the stronger its gods. When these two collide, the resulting ‘civilizational martyrdom’… that is the Black Pit.”
Gawain’s eyes widened. When this long-sought answer finally struck him head-on, he almost held his breath. Only when his heart began pounding did he manage to speak, his voice urgent: “Wait, you mentioned a ‘third story’ earlier that you hadn’t told me. Does that mean there’s another one…?”
“You just said you had ‘one’ more question,” the Dragon God interrupted gently, a faint smile playing on her lips. “This is the second.”
Gawain was momentarily at a loss for words. He opened his mouth to speak again, but the deity silently shook her head.
After a moment, Gawain exhaled. “Alright, I understand.”
He took a step back. “Thank you for your hospitality and your patient answers. This has truly been an enlightening conversation. I suppose I should be going now—my friends are still waiting.”
“Please do,” the Dragon God nodded gracefully. “Heragor is at the door; he will escort you back.”
Gawain gave a slight nod in thanks, then turned and strode toward the exit of the sanctuary hall.
He could feel a gaze fixed on his back—unwavering, unrelenting.
At the doorway stood the high-ranking Dragon Priest, his pale golden hair and stern expression unchanged, as if he had never left the corridor.
He had once been a leader among the dragons.
He had once been a warrior who rose up against the gods.
He had once wielded the legacy left by the Voyagers, and perhaps… he too had dreamed of the stars.
“Greetings, High Priest.”
“Guest, shall I escort you back?”
“Thank you, I appreciate it.”
“You’re welcome.”
(End of chapter)