"New York," Nick repeated. "It's huge."
"It's over 50 kilometers across, and we have found ruins of buildings that were up to ten kilometers high," Simon said.
"Ten kilometers?!" Nick repeated in shock.
"The technology level of the Ancient Ones was unfathomable," Simon said, "and most shocking of all was that they achieved all of this in just 5,000 years or so. The Ancient Ones used to record their history in years, and the latest records have been written sometime within the 5,500s in their calendar."
Simon frowned. "We even saw records of weapons that had the power to destroy the world."
"How?" Nick asked.
"It was some kind of gigantic cannon that fired some kind of machine that could dig into the core of the planet before detonating with tons upon tons of something they called antimatter. The explosion would destroy the core, which would result in the entire world collapsing in on itself and breaking apart."
Nick could barely believe what he was hearing.
He wasn't even sure if an Eternal could do that.
"How did such a civilization come to an end?" Nick asked.
"Their bodies," Simon answered. "Their technologies had terrifying power, but the bodies of the Ancient Ones were not stronger than normal citizens. We found piles of ashes that had once been human in many different ruins."
"Some kind of force penetrated the ancient buildings and turned everyone to ash. All their power was useless. They could destroy, but they could not protect themselves."
Nick remained silent as he thought about that.
It made sense.
The Ancient Ones were able to destroy, but behind their weapons, they were still made of flesh and bone.
An attack that targeted organic matter would kill them.
The two of them flew towards the north, passing by the lower half of the big statue.
Nick could already see Aegis' headquarters.
It was a humongous pyramid of white metal.
It was similar to the megastructure in Crimson City but bigger and straighter.
Crimson City's megastructure was curved, while Aegis' headquarters had corners and straight walls.
The entire thing was around five kilometers tall.
The two of them slowly approached the humongous structure.
Nick could see a big balcony halfway up the structure towards which they were flying.
The two of them landed on the balcony without any issues and started to approach the huge gate in front of them.
Two people were standing beside the entrance.
One of them approached Simon and bowed. "Protector," he said politely.
Simon nodded and pulled out a sheet of paper, showing it to the person.
Nick could feel a terrifying amount of Zephyx emanating from the person in front of Nick.
'That must be a Hero!' Nick thought.
The Hero looked through the sheet of paper and nodded. "You're free to go," he said.
Simon put the sheet of paper away again and approached the gate.
The other guard was also bowing politely at Simon.
And then, the two of them nodded politely at Nick, which surprised him.
Nick was just an Expert, but the two Heroes nodded at him with respect.
Nick nodded back.
"They are here as punishment," Simon spoke, not even trying to hide his words from them. "Their arrogance cost many lives, which is why they have to humble themselves by standing guard here."
The two Heroes didn't react to Simon's words.
They seemed used to it.
"If anyone isn't happy with their conduct, they may hand a formal complaint to Aegis, and most of the time, the duration of their punishment is extended," Simon said.
Nick raised an eyebrow. "Wouldn't that invite blackmail? Someone could just threaten them with a complaint and demand payment."
"Yes, and that's how it is supposed to be," Simon said as the gate in front of him opened. "They were corrupt, and now, they will be the victims of corruption."
Nick remained silent.
He was not sure if he liked that policy or not.
The gate finished opening, and Nick saw a huge hallway shining with light.
The light felt different from the light of the sun, but it also didn't feel artificial.
"What kind of light is this?" Nick asked as they walked into the hallway.
"This is the light of the Champion of Light," Simon said. "His power illuminates the headquarters with his light."
Simon looked at the shining ceiling with a serious expression.
"If this light dims, humanity's future will follow."
Nick took a deep breath.
The two of them continued walking.
"How many people are in this building?" Nick asked, looking at the empty hallways.
"About a thousand," Simon answered.
"Only a thousand?" Nick asked.
"Aegis doesn't have enough people, which is why over 90% of them are not here," Simon explained. "There are a couple of research teams and administrators stationed here, and there are barely any Extractors. The majority of people are the loved ones of Heroes and Protectors working for Aegis."
"In exchange for offering their services to Aegis, the Heroes and Protectors are allowed to have their families live here, in the safest location in the world."
"They are to be treated with respect by everyone, but they must reciprocate that respect. We are all humans, and we must all work together for the greater good of humanity."
Nick nodded in agreement.
The two of them reached a door, which opened on its own.
Behind the door was a huge shaft over 20 meters wide.
This was an Extractor shaft of gigantic proportions.
Nick started to hover again, and the two of them flew upward.
They went past many closed doors until they reached the end of the shaft.
The door in front of them opened, and the two of them flew through it.
After that, Nick found himself in a big white hall filled with statues.
"These are the Halls of Remembrance," Simon said.
Nick looked at the statues.
All of them were of people.
"All of these people have contributed to humanity's survival."
Simon became silent for a couple of seconds.
"The statues are only erected after their passing," he added with a heavy voice.
Nick just looked at the statues.
All of these people had helped humanity.
There were over a hundred!
So many people had given their lives so that the weaker people could survive.
Nick held deep respect for these people.
Wasn't this his goal as well?
Nick had always hated how Crimson City had treated the Dregs, and when that incident with Horua had happened, Nick had decided to dedicate his life to helping humanity.
Sadly, he hadn't contributed a lot yet.
In fact, he felt like he had damaged humanity more than helping it.
The incident with the Crimson Sea appeared in Nick's mind.
'I have to redeem myself,' he thought. 'I have killed many innocent people, and the only way to redeem myself is to help even more.'
The familiar pain of guilt appeared in Nick's chest.
It hurt so much.
It always hurt.
He just wanted to run away from all of this guilt.
But he couldn't.
He had to keep living and redeem himself.
Aegis was humanity's shield against doom.
'Aegis is where I belong,' Nick thought. 'I am not supposed to lead a company. My goal is not to become rich but to help humanity.'
Nick looked at the statues. 'If there is ever a statue of me in here, I will know that I have successfully redeemed myself.'
Nick took a deep breath.
Simon watched Nick closely for his reaction, and he was happy at what he saw.
Nick genuinely seemed to respect the people represented in the Halls of Remembrance.
'He might not be honest,' Simon thought, 'but his feelings seem to be genuine. He wants to help humanity.'
'As long as our goals align, we are companions.'
Simon led Nick through the Halls of Remembrance and stopped in front of an unassuming door at the side of the hall.
But instead of stepping through, Simon just silently waited in front of the door.
He stood straight and didn't dare to show any disrespect.
Nick waited in silence.
Suddenly, the door opened, and Simon stepped through.
Nick followed Simon, and the two of them entered the room.
The room was quite dark, but there was still a bit of light.
However, it was dark enough that the Nightmare had influence over this room, but just barely.
People would feel watched and hear whispers in the back of their minds.
Someone was sitting in the middle of the room.
It was a woman wearing a completely black uniform.
She had black hair and an icy and dangerous aura encompassed the room.
She looked to be in her fifties, and her appearance seemed disheveled.
"Respected Left Arm," Simon spoke quietly while bowing politely.
"Respected Left Arm," Nick spoke as well, copying Simon's tone and movement.
This was the Left Arm.
One of the two leaders of humanity, just below the Champion of Light.
A Shield.
One of seven Shields.
The Left Arm opened her eyes and looked at Simon.
However, she did that only for a moment before looking at Nick.
Nick couldn't see her due to his bow, but after the Left Arm looked at him for just a moment, her eyes narrowed, and her expression became intense.
"The Nightmare," she said with the voice of an old and cruel woman.