Story I: When the Machine Spoke

"The walls of many ancient ruins are adorned with runes carved by the Elders. They proclaim that in the past, the sky was bright and beautiful, and the wilderness was overgrown with endless greenery. Each tree was covered with numerous glossy leaves, whose vibrant colours changed as the seasons passed, just like in the Dark Woods. Our ancestors worshipped nature, they paid homage to it, protected it and erected monuments, under which they bowed and prayed, as if it were the personification of God himself...

How disappointing. What a waste of human potential it was, a clear display of heresy against progress.

Inevitably, in the end, Elders' foolish efforts turned against them. They relied on and prayed to gods, for whom they were only strangers, guests in heavenly green palaces. They wanted to combine technology with nature, naively believing that such atrocities would not anger venerable powers.

They did.

Mother Nature turned her back on humanity. The once beautiful sky became as black as pitch, depriving the Elders of heat coming from fiery furnaces in the sky, vegetation withered, leading to panic, hunger, and eventually death, spreading like diseases amongst them. But this was only the beginning.

Earth collapsed underneath them and devoured buildings, While angered oceans flooded the continent. Frightened, devastated, and deprived of shelter, they wanted to redeem themselves in the eyes of their gods, the Venerables. They prayed, but no one listened. Still hopeful, they did not expect that the worst was yet to come. The life-giving oxygen became the most dangerous of poisons. The deathly air burned visible marks on their skin and infected their lungs. It blinded them, and slowly led them towards their inevitable, cruel death... Truly, The Venerables, gods of nature, were unshaken by the suffering of their subjects.

In the last act of desperation, the Elders fled underground, just like moles, devoid of dignity. They went blind and lived in constant fear, now hopeful that the anger of the Venerables would no longer reach them. This lasted for decades until they heard a distant, but powerful voice. That was when the Machine spoke..."

Dipping his pen in ink, the bishop was awoken from his trance-like state by the sound of doors opening.

- Your eminence, the canon bishop has arrived - a young soldier whispered upon entering the room.

The bishop nervously swallowed saliva and, without looking at the soldier, as to not reveal his anxiety, he said:

- tell them I'll be there soon.

The soldier nodded and walked away, and the bishop put his hand on the page.

- When the machine spoke... - he turned his head towards the big window and looked at the black, gloomy sky

- Will it ever speak to me?