Long-term salvation

Chapter 175: Bone Cave

After injecting Mr. Delapore with a sedative and tying him up, Rod stood up and said to Dr. Timothy Flyte, who was sorting out the handheld DV and camera:

"His future depends on the outcome of the next negotiation with that person. If it doesn't work out, he'll have no choice but to be locked up in a mental hospital... This is truly a tragedy, a tragedy from our ancestors."

"It's the cannibal curse in our blood," Dr. Flyte shook his head. He then turned his attention to the simply tied-up James Bond. "So what should we do with this man? Beat him up and throw him out. He's just causing trouble for others if he stays here."

"No, take him with you. If a deal needs to be made down there, we can throw him out."

"...We can't do something that goes against morality, Rhodes."

"PhD."

Rhodes placed his hands on the doctor's shoulders, glanced at 007 who began to struggle, and said gently:

"He was an agent of MI6, the secret intelligence agency of the British Empire that colonized almost every continent, suppressed and massacred tens of millions of people—probably more, after all, no one in the world had more KPIs than Queen Victoria."

"Oh! Then take him with you. Although I'm English," Dr. Flyte touched his chest and breathed a sigh of relief, "but now that you mention it, I also feel that sacrificing him will make me feel a lot better."

Bond, worried about his future, grumbled in frustration. He had tried to resist, but was basically beaten back by the man called "Rod" with faster fists. Who the hell was he? Batman or Captain America?

Where is Captain Britain?

After lifting Bond up from the ground, Rhodes pushed him forward, and the four of them, including a black cat, came to the lower cellar of Exham Priory.

There were only a few candles that had been lit in advance in the cellar. The dim candlelight was flickering because of the foul-smelling wind from the cave entrance, casting the shadows of the ignorant and fearless people who stepped into this place on the surrounding walls, as if to lock them up in a dark and terrifying prison and torture them slowly.

Dr. Fleet turned on his headlamp and, as Bond stared at him in surprise, put one on him as well. Then he followed Rod toward the cave entrance. Rod was in the front, and Abigail was at the back, feeding Pickman some kind of "muscle and bone strengthening"—some kind of strange pet food that made a crunching sound when chewed by a cat.

Behind the cave entrance is a set of badly worn steps winding downwards, almost turning into a rough ramp, but even here there are still countless bones piled up. The bones of those short, tall, human-like or even beasts are unevenly spread in this dark area.

"Oh my God! What the hell is going on here?!"

Bond screamed in a low voice. He estimated secretly and found that the number of skeletons within the range of the light alone exceeded a thousand, and these were the ones that were relatively well preserved and could be seen in their original appearance!

"A remnant of an ancient and dark history," Dr. Flyte said calmly. He took pictures of the skeletons with his camera and followed Rhodes to the bottom floor. Unlike before, this place was illuminated by a faint light coming from nowhere.

This cavern, vast beyond human reach, resembles a tomb of civilization, filled with a deep, hollow aura of death. From the ancient Celtic stone tombs, the vast row houses of early England, the iconic domed temples of the Romans, and the gloomy and forbidding architectural complexes of the Victorian era, all are laid bare before everyone, as if foreshadowing the ultimate fate of human civilization.

After taking a quiet look at the buildings in front of him and the desecrated bones scattered all over the place, Rhodes turned around and untied the ropes that bound Bond, and then stuffed him with two overhead batteries and a flashlight. Facing the surprised, somewhat puzzled and wary eyes, Rhodes said unhappily:

"A fool can cause more damage than a clever enemy. If you can keep an eye on Dr. Flyte, we'll have plenty of time to talk later. Don't you want to know who I am?"

"I just want to know your relationship with Irons... Hey!"

Bond turned his wrist and was about to stick the bug behind Rhodes, but the latter twisted his wrist away and not only took away the bug but also threw a series of other small items such as hidden cameras into the pit next to him.

Bond glanced at the darkness of the pit with a hint of regret. Feeling his eyes a little dry, he quickly looked away and complained:

“Those things are expensive.”

"Just ask your royal family to spend less money on decorating the garden. It's the 1990s, and it still looks like a feudal dynasty from the 1990s."

As Rod spoke, he glanced at Abigail. The girl looked a little angry, and her slightly chubby cheeks were now puffed up with anger. Her fists were clenched white, and she looked like she was ready to fight someone... a little cute, but she was obviously no match for that person, and her father had to step in.

"Since you're stronger than me, I forgive your disrespect to the Queen. So, what is your relationship with Ains?"

"Relationship? I am his leader, his guide, his savior, that's it."

"...Irons will be furious when he hears this," Dr. Flyte poked his head out from a dilapidated cylindrical brick building, a smile on his face. "He'll definitely call you over and give you a good scolding - but then again, is it really okay to have this MI6 spy following us?"

"How can he prove a place that doesn't exist? Look around, Doctor. I assume you know something about geology. Do you think such a large cave could form naturally in this place? The answer is no - in other words, welcome to the other world, Dr. Flyte."

Rhodes shrugged, his gaze falling on the deep pit in the distance. It was a stone passage that spiraled down like a staircase, covered in ugly, bloody scratches and things like nails embedded in it, as if it had been dug out by someone's bare hands.

"Actually, I think it's okay for the British government to know anything. They'll have to deal with it eventually."

Standing at the edge of the deep pit, Rhodes turned to look at Dr. Flyte and Bond and said seriously:

"Leave here now, Doctor. Escape. I'm not exaggerating. What I'm about to face is beyond my capabilities. If a conflict really breaks out, even I will find it difficult to escape."

"It seems I will witness something that ordinary people cannot see," Dr. Flyte said calmly. "Let me go, Rod. Lying in a hospital bed and dying of old age is not our dream. Not to mention—I am a scholar and a cat. If I lose my curiosity, I will die."

"It's not the right time, Doctor." Rhodes laughed. He picked up the black cat Pickman from Abigail's shoulders and put him in the Doctor's arms. "Let Pickman protect you. If there is any danger, he will throw you out... As for Mr. Bond."

"I followed him. This is basic professional ethics."

"Then, as you wish."

Note 1: Captain Britain is a superhero published by Marvel Comics in the United States. He first appeared in Captain Britain #1 (1976).

Chapter 176 Nyarlathotep (3.5K)

Rhodes walked along the road along the edge of the deep pit. It was more like an abyss than a deep pit.

Endless bones piled up layer by layer, filling the void in the middle. If you stood in the middle of the pile of bones and looked up at this moment, like a prisoner standing at the bottom of a deep well and looking up, you would only see a tiny circular glimmer of light - that was the entrance to the cave that could never be reached, and the hunger that could never be satisfied.

Rhode walked quietly on the dust that had turned to bones. He could still hear the faint sound of others' footsteps, but as he continued to go deeper into the darkness, the sound disappeared. It wasn't that they gradually faded away, but suddenly, as if the power button had been pressed, all the sounds around him disappeared without a trace.

The darkness engulfed everyone.

After Rhode estimated that he had been walking for nearly sixty minutes, the world before him gradually brightened, and a straight road appeared before him.

This road looks like it is paved with white marble, and the steps on both sides of the road are engraved with mysterious golden patterns - noble, gorgeous yet weird - the patterns are all the sufferings of intelligent life. They scream in pain, regretting their own stupidity and ignorance, and eventually become one of the achievements of the gods standing at the end of the road.

Countless slaves crawled up the gentle slopes on both sides of the road. They were dressed in gorgeous clothes, but in their hands they held those dark, hard chains that extended down the slope, into the darkness and fog. From time to time, someone was dragged in, but no one chose to let go. Their ecstatic faces were filled with desire and ugly lust.

Come to me, Rod.

A voice sounded in Rhodes' ears. He reached out to straighten his coat collar and walked forward.

With every step forward, Rhodes witnessed the atrocities and crimes that occurred in human history, the hideous faces of those who faced disasters, and even those tragedies that moved people to pity... These images and sounds passed by him, transforming into rumbling tanks and armored vehicles, whistling fighter planes, and steel battleships. When Rhodes stood at the edge of the steps below the throne, everything transformed into the same oil painting. Rhodes stood before everyone, holding high the banner called "Victory" and shouting the declaration of "Victory":

【Humanity has conquered the other world! 】

"lie."

Rhodes stepped onto the first step.

【The human generations after us will no longer need to sacrifice! 】

"madness."

【The human generations after us will live forever in peace! 】

"Innocent."

The third and fourth sections, each sentence made Rhodes' face colder. He climbed the stairs and stood in front of the tall but thin figure.

"As far as temptation is concerned, this is far from enough to sway me."

The incarnation of this god had a face similar to that of an ancient pharaoh in his youth, dressed in a colorful and gorgeous robe, and wore a golden double crown that naturally shone with light. Under these colorful features was his black skin. This was not the skin color or appearance of the indigenous Africans, but pure black, a symbol of pure darkness and chaos. If it were not for a pair of evil eyes engraved on that face, Rhodes would not even be able to make out the expression in front of him.

Looking at Rhode's face, the pharaoh, with his noble demeanor, touched his chest and apologized sincerely:

"What happened when you entered the monastery was an accident. I never meant it to be that way, and of course, that was also the case just now."

"If that person had arrived later, it wouldn't be an accident, right?" Rhodes raised his eyebrows slightly, his eyes sweeping across the surroundings. "Abigail, where are my friends?"

"Their time is a little slower than yours," Pharaoh said casually, as if manipulating time was a piece of cake for him—which it was. "I need to have a good chat with you... a deal, like the one I made with my brother. How about it?"

"Dealing with the God of Deception is truly disheartening."

"Oh, you understand me well!" The Pharaoh grinned, and several small monsters with black wings and three-lobed, burning eyes flew out, dancing between the palms of the god incarnate. "Is it that thing in you that helps? Or are you from another universe?"

"As an intelligent being who has never set foot outside of my home galaxy, it's difficult for me to explain this to you, but for now, it's true—I come from another universe."

"There's more than one universe, right?" Pharaoh asked casually.

"..."

"You are so broken, so pitiful, but I can help you." The Pharaoh reached out and grasped Rhodes's hand. Between his palms, a shining trapezoidal octahedron floated and slowly rotated. "Call my name, and I will come and give you—knowledge? Power? Or more direct help? All you have to do is pay a small price."

"When you make a deal with the devil, don't wonder if there are traps in the terms. There definitely are. Don't think you've already considered the price and won't regret it. You definitely will."

Rhodes pulled his hand back, but before he could say anything else, he heard light footsteps approaching quickly - Abigail ran in from somewhere, a keyhole emitting a faint purple light appeared on her forehead, and the eyes in the keyhole were staring at the Black Pharaoh indifferently.

Abigail wasn't the only one there; Dr. Timothy Flyte and James Bond had also arrived. They were horrified by their surroundings, tears streaming from their eyes. Without hesitation, the doctor quickly closed his eyes and plugged his ears, turning on his camera. It was working properly, but what it could capture was another matter...

Bond's condition wasn't so good either. He scratched his chest, as if something was about to burst out. In his vision, thousands of undead spirits were trying to get into his body, and those that had already gotten in were trying to leave!

The Pharaoh raised a finger, and Bond fainted on the ground. However, Dr. Flyt was able to breathe a little. The horrible illusion that had been hovering in his eyes and ears gradually dissipated, allowing the old scholar with white temples to get up from the ground, open his blood-stained eyes and look around curiously.

"My father said," Abigail grabbed Rhodes' hand and huddled behind him. She had long lost the anger and arrogance she had when she first entered the Bone Cave. Now she bared her teeth like a kitten. "He was here first. You are not allowed to cause trouble here."

"Making trouble? No, my dear niece, I am simply giving the savior of human civilization here some extra options."

As the Pharaoh spoke, his grin widened even wider, almost tearing his face in two:

"Just like the Necronomicon I gave to that mad Arab Abdul Alhazred, even though it's now reduced to fragments—but speaking of which, where do you think the person with the most pages is now?"

"Afghanistan," Rhodes frowned. He guessed the answer to the puzzle almost instantly. "In the hands of the Iblis organization."

"Clever!" Pharaoh laughed. He clapped his hands vigorously, flattening and restoring the trapezoid like plasticine. "Oh, they've probably left Afghanistan by now."

It's a near-free gift, but it's also bait on the hook.

After instantly realizing the danger, Rhode took a deep breath and turned to Abigail behind him and said:

"Let's get out of here."

"Oh wait, wait, my friend and potential client," Pharaoh raised his hand, letting the trapezohedron float in front of Rhodes. He then said in a dangerous, slightly persuasive voice, "Don't rush to refuse. I can give you an advance deposit. You need a suitable prison to imprison those 'otherworldly creations', right?"

"A prison, a city, a city of eternal night, a city that exists between the real and supernatural dimensions!"

Pharaoh bent down, stared into Abigail's eyes through the lock hole, and said with a smile:

"Want to participate in this big project?"

"We just... um, but..."

Abigail opened her mouth but swallowed her words back, obviously not hearing the answer she wanted from among the stars.

"What good does this do you?" Rhodes raised an eyebrow. "Yog hopes to observe this universe, a mixture of countless timelines and world information, for a long time. Therefore, he is willing to lend me a hand and prolong the 'life' of this civilization as much as possible so that he can see more. What about you? Nyarlathotep, the creeping chaos, the messenger of the blind and foolish god - I understand you. Because of this, I am afraid but also proud to stand before you and speak. Human courage and reason protect me. Now, I stand here, as a human being, and ask you - Nyarlathotep, what do you want from me?"

The Thousand-Faced God, Nyarlathotep smiled, raised his finger and touched Rhodes' forehead. The pure energy flowed into his brain, stimulating the mysterious gland called the "pineal gland".

"you."

"My brother wants to observe this wonderful world that is broken and then put together, complex yet still intact. As for me, I want to observe you—you who are the same as this world—just like the Warhammer chess piece you created. I want to obtain you, and then place you in my collection cabinet, on my desk, as a decoration that I will discard billions of years later."

"I will carefully admire your gradual decline, from savior to tyrant, plunging humanity into terror and despair. This is where my pleasure lies. I will admire the decline, collapse and struggle of intelligent civilization, and finally capture the last life's dying sigh. And you will outline this for me - just a hesitation, a hand reaching out to the taboo."

Nyarlathotep slowly approached Rhodes, his body changing rapidly, the crawling chaos, the black pharaoh, the swollen woman, the faceless sphinx... Finally, it turned into a sticky and turbid darkness, and gradually twisted into the shape of a brown-skinned woman.

The woman placed the shining trapezoid in Rhodes' hand and whispered in his ear:

"I can give you a small hint first—the Eternal City really exists, it just needs to be rebuilt. The way to get there is recorded on the fragments of the Necronomicon... The page closest to your little house is in an apartment converted from an abandoned bank. You'll find it there."

"Similarly, as a condition of the deal, I will let my daughter help you and also be your future jailer - what's that expression on your face? I also have a partner! (Note ①)"

"Come here, my daughter," Nyarlathotep turned and waved to the girl who had been standing in the shadows. "Let me introduce you to my offspring who has inherited some of my abilities... You can call her by my name, or you can keep it simple, but this is a matter between you young people."

Rhodes looked over at Abigail's panting like a frightened kitten and saw a girl with long silver hair, a long, wiry hair on her head, and a mischievous smile on her face.

Note ①: Yhoundeh is from the short story "The Door to Saturn" by Clark Ashton Smith.

Chapter 177: The End of the Monastery

"We'll meet again later, Rod."

When Nyarlathotep's gaze shifted away from here, Rhodes was shocked to find that he and the others were standing in the cellar of Exum Monastery. The entrance to the bone cave behind them had gradually "healed", and there was no trace of its existence.

In contrast, the silver key on Abigail's chest shone just as brightly as before. It seemed to be a small gift from Nyarlathotep, a mere gift of pure energy, to compensate for the girl's expended effort in opening the "Gate" from Arkham, United States, and traveling here.

To be honest, Rhodes couldn't believe that Nyarlathotep had any good intentions - His good intentions were 100% to set a trap for the future - for example, right now, the girl with long silver hair and ahoge was grabbing one of Rhodes' hands with Abigail, and they were so strong that it seemed like they were going to split themselves in two.

"Ladies, could you please spare me?" Rhodes reluctantly broke free and knocked the two girls on the head. "I have to go help Dr. Timothy Flyte sort out the things he collected."

"That's not necessary, Rhodes... Just make sure these two 'lovely ladies' don't throw the entire British Isles into the other world out of jealousy."

Dr. Flyte immediately raised his hand to refuse. The old doctor's spirit and sanity had suffered multiple critical blows in less than two hours. If his will was not strong enough and Nyarlathotep did not specifically target him, he would have to lie down with 007 next to him.

"Ahem, actually, I'm not that powerful," Nayako stuck out her tongue, leaped over Rhode's back like a deer, and circled around to Abigail's side, rubbing her cheek against the reluctant girl. "I'll just be a little taller than my sister Abigail... She'll grow gradually, and so will I."

"Hmm! Stay away from me, you definitely have bad intentions!"

"How is that possible?! I'm devoted to Rhodes—his face, personality, and even this shattered yet perfectly reunited soul are simply the favorites of our Nyarlathotep family... Hehehe, for thousands and millions of years, after they are all dead and their souls are annihilated in the long river of time, Rhodes will be mine—Love is a slave to Chaos (戀は渾乱の隷也)!"