The next morning, Kura made Rindou some old fashioned sandwiches with some bread, cheese, tomatoes and onions he had packed the night before. After they finished eating, Kura led Rindou out of the inn and up the dirt path to a small bridge and then to a dais at the back of the village, where in the center of it sat a large chapel looking stone structure.

"What's this?" Rindou asked curiously.

"The biggest library of religious records in the world," Kura answered and went through the open stone doors. Rindou followed quietly, not understanding too much.

Kura walked to the back to a man dressed in a white robe with odd symbols drawn all over it in gold. Hanging from the man's white long beard were small cyan beads braided into the fine hair, whilst in his hand he held an old staff with gold lined onto it.

"Yo, gramps, what's with that piece of drift wood you've got there?" Rindou asked as they approached the man. Kura gasped, turned and suddenly hit Rindou on the head with his fist. "OUCH!!!"

"Shut up!" Kura shouted and turned back to the old man. "So sorry! He's a bit dumb and tends to speak his mind before thinking."

The man nodded and said in a soft whisper, "He is excused. What can I do for you?"

"I'd like to see the scriptures relating to the legend about the treasure." Kura answered with a smile.

"Both of them?"

"Both?" Rindou asked, rubbing his head. Kura turned to look at Rindou, when he did Rindou had put up his arms to stop Kura if he were to hit him again. "What?! I'm just asking!" Kura looked back to the old man without a word.

"Yes, both. Asking isn't a crime, friend." the man said. "I see they only told you of one of them. The more detailed one, I assume. That's fine though. Would you rather read it or prefer me to recite them?"

"Recite. That would be wonderful," Kura smiled.

"Very well." The man cleared his throat and suddenly spoke louder, "The oldest scripture on record is this legend. It is much more vague but means the same as the detailed one:

The sun raises with sparks

Oceans flow without direction

Masks of unknowning darkness

creep their way unto the heart

Believing to be at peace one

cannot hope to truly find it

The pretty blue of sky turns to

a crimson flame

Not with the passion

but with the anger

Crimson blood drips from The above

Oceans once blue turn to the

same red as The above

Unknowing to the peace a white orb

Being calm in the red, the white pearl

shines without pain

Something lost can always be found

even in the smoldering ashes

Just know where to look.

The other one is much more detailed. Would you like to hear that one as well?"

"Yes, please!" Kura nodded.

Rindou groaned, "But this is boring!"

"Shut it!" Kura ordered and turned to the man, "Please, continue."

The man cleared his throat and recited:

"Tful rfu azuol replq pub cpak rfu qhi, rfu--"

"Wait, what's he saying?" Rindou interrupted.

"You can't understand him?" Kura asked with surprise, looking to Rindou.

Rindou nodded. "Of course I can't. It sounds like gibberish to me."

Kura laughed. "N-no! It's the language of the Ancients. I've known it since I was born."

"How?"

"...Nevermind." Kura shook his head and looked to the man, "Could you please continue in english so my friend can understand as well?"

"I'll start over," the man nodded. "When the ocean turns red from the sky, the Ancients time will become reality. The two mortal worlds vanish at the hands of Royalty from which their blood flows within. The day of fate for the Prince of the two worlds to travel to the Shimmering Land and give up thy Treasure. Upon this selfless act upon Royalty's own will, the True Prince shall awaken from his slumber and lead the Ancient world against thine own Shimmering Land of The above."

"That's better!" Rindou nodded. "Wait.. What Prince-- me? And what Ancient and Ancient world? And what the heck about Shimmering Land?!"

Kura shook his head. "I think you'd better explain it to him slowly."

The man nodded again, "Indeed. This one is uneducated."

"Hey!"

The man cleared his throat. "Royalty is speaking about the royal family bloodline that has survived thousands of years to our world. Prince is the one male of this family whom the blood is most strong in. Ancient world refers to our world ten thousand years ago before the Great Shift."

"Finally!" Rindou sighed, "Something I've heard about."

"What do you know?" Kura asked.

"It was caused by some guy named Omphitros." Rindou answered. "Him and his people came to possess some sort of great mega-cannon and planned to fire it at the Sacred Land where the hero Azrael lived. Furious that his land was about to be destroyed, Azrael went on a two week long journey around the world to find out the power source and nipped it in the bud. But the shockwave wasn't without consequence. It sent a huge shockwave throughout the entire world, destroying many lives."

Kura nodded, "Somewhat right at least. I'm impressed you knew all that."

"Why?" Rindou blinked, "It's common knowledge for the royal family."

"Because, that's what seperated the Ancient world and our world- Barbatous." Kura replied.

"WHAT?!"

The man nodded, "Indeed. The shock was actually caused by the two power sources being put against each other and neutrilizing each other out. As a result, Azrael the Hero, vanished from our world."

"Two powers?" Rindou blinked.

"So it's been said," Kura answered. "See, I'm that Prince the legend talks about. It should have been my cousin, but something happened and I was... Well giving Treasure."

"Oh yeah.. Treasure." Rindou nodded slowly. "So what is it and what's this 'The above' and Shimmering Land?"

"Our Sacred Land is the same as the Shimmering Land." the man answered easily. "It has been theorized that somewhere near there is a link to Heaven- called The above in other scriptures recovered from before the Great Shift."

Rindou nodded, still not understanding all of it. "So.. What does this have to do with Kura?"

"He must travel to the top of the sky terrace here- one hundred feet into the air- to meet with the Guiding Goddess of Heaven, Amphitra."

"Amphitra?" Rindou blinked, looking to Kura.

Kura nodded and explained, "She's Omphitros older twin sister."

"So they're both from Heaven?!"

"Not sure really..." Kura frowned.

The man nodded, "Kura doesn't have to go to the terrace though until the sky turns red and it rains blood. If it follows the legend, a white pearl - or orb rather - should float down and stop the blood before the world is broken."

"...Wait. You can break the world?!" Rindou nearly fainted at that.

"In a sense," the man replied, his voice going soft again. "You see the blood is like a toxin. It acts like rain which is water. It will essentially overcome all of our oceans and herbacultures."

"But the animals will be-" Rindou started.

"No, they won't." The man shook his head. "The carnivorous animals eat the herbivorous animals, which eat the plants, which eat the water which has been turned into a toxin. In exchange, humans will be forced to either eat the toxined animals and die from the plague, or starve and die in that sense."

"Wow.." Rindou looked down. "I guess what they say about water controlling all life is true..."