Chapter XL

Summary

• The protagonist is traveling at high speed on the Transvect, a transport system, leaving a place with a platform and a man named Ulciscor.
• The journey on the Transvect is terrifyingly fast, and the protagonist contemplates the risk of the upcoming jump off.
• The protagonist has a brief flashback to a traumatic event from the past before successfully landing in water, inside a protective barrier.
• The protagonist uses a locator stone to navigate in the surroundings, reaching the ruins of Solivagus, a forested area.
• The journey to the ruins is physically exhausting, and the protagonist encounters and overcomes various obstacles.
• The ruins consist of a small town's worth of buildings and a massive dome. The dome is made of a material similar to glass, appearing indestructible and unmarked by time.
• The protagonist discovers the symbol of the Hierarchy etched into the dome and utters some familiar words: "Luceum", "Obiteum", and "Scintres Exunus".
• Upon saying these words, a doorway opens in the dome leading to a descending corridor lined with statues of men and women with obsidian blades through their chests.
• The protagonist is suddenly thrown and starts falling into a dark abyss, losing the torch in the process.