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The sun beat down harshly on the desert sands. For miles the ancient dunes rolled like waves upon the sea, and as vast as the sea the dunes were. Half buried and long forgotten, a ruined city lay in this place. It’s pillars still stood high above the sands touched only by the wind and dust for many thousands of years. Above this lost and forgotten place, among the clouds, a soft whirring pierced the long and ancient silence as a Biplane approached the ruin. The pilot studied a map as he flew overhead. He looked down at the ruin and then back at the map as he circled in the air above. After a while the plane descended towards the ruin and landed in a relatively flat area close by. 415Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNoAtVVRKNu
The pilot jumped from the cockpit, onto the bottom wing, and then down to the ground, his dirty black boots kicking up dust as he landed. He looked around for a moment and then looked back at his map, after he was sure of where he was, he tossed the map back into the cockpit. The pilot removed his helmet and goggles revealing a sturdy and rugged face accented with a bushy black mustache. He placed his helmet and goggles onto the wing and reached into a leather bag he had thrown over his shoulder. He pulled out a pair of binoculars and looked through them. He surveyed the landscape for a few moments and placed the binoculars back into his bag. 415Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAMN3mX2QWX
Finally, the pilot began to move forward, and down the sandy dune on which he stood, dust blowing in the air as he did. Once he made it down he reached inside of his jacket and pulled out his pistol. It was a revolver with six shots, an oil black barrel, and a red wooden finish on the handle as well as a few scuffs and scrapes because it was well used. The pilot cocked the hammer back and held the pistol in front of him, ready to fire if necessary. He slowly walked forward with his ear to the wind, wary of the dangers that might lie ahead.415Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIbrcFb09RE
The pilot approached what looked like an old well, long dry and abandoned. A heavy stone cap sat atop the well, cracked and chipped but still very sturdy. The pilot put his heel to the cap and with a great push attempted to move the heavy lid. It slid slowly and roughly across the top of the well, eventually falling to the side and slumping heavily onto the ground. The pilot looked around again, seeing if the ruckus drew any attention. After a few moments he turned his focus back to the well. Attached to his jacket was a flashlight which he grabbed and shone down the well, it was completely dark.415Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUzbGrBUEy0
The pilot grumbled something under his breath and reached for the rope that hung from his belt. He approached one of the tall pillars that stood nearby and inspected it. After he decided that it looked sturdy enough, he tied one end of the rope to it and headed back to the well. After pulling on the rope a few good times to test the strength of the knot, the pilot lowered himself down into the darkness. He descended slowly pausing every foot or so to shine his light down. Eventually he saw the sandy floor of the well and dropped to the bottom.415Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9wn0u6A3Cf
The pilot pointed the light ahead and saw a wall just a few feet in front of him. It was decorated with all sorts of runes and images carved in stone and worn with age. The pilot reached into his bag and pulled out a small leather bound journal. He flipped the journal open to a page with various symbols written across it. He glanced at the journal and then back up at the wall. He did this back and forth for a few minutes until he studied everything in front of him. He moved his light across the wall and stopped whenever he saw a rune or symbol, glanced back at his book, and continued scanning the if he wasn’t satisfied. This went on for several minutes until he saw a pedestal enter into his light.415Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4ocsMO2bGY
The pilot approached the pedestal and atop it sat a stone tablet on display. At least a part of it was destroyed as an obvious break could be seen on it’s right side. Upon further inspection he saw that a script was wedged into the surface, in a language far older than the already ancient room that it was housed in. The pilot looked back at his book as he meticulously studied every letter on the tablet’s surface. Finally he saw a symbol that matched: A tree devoid of leaves and seven fruits that bung from its seven branches. He closed the book and put it back into his pack.415Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡN38sXdBRat
The Pilot carefully removed the tablet from its pedestal and wrapped it in a cloth, and placed it into his bag. He then turned round and mounted the rope again scaling it quickly. Once he reached the top of the well He felt a strong wind stirring and Sand carried along with it. The pilot swore as he crawled out of the well. He turned around to see a sandstorm quickly approaching his location. 415Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxifeuikUrt
The pilot left the rope where it lay and sprinted back up the hill towards his plane. The wind began to pick up and nearly threw him off his feet, but he kept his balance and reached his plane. He quickly climbed into the cockpit and started the engine and the propeller began to spin. The wind and sand pelted the pilot as he took off and the sandstorm threatened to swallow him whole. His visibility rapidly dismissed as he climbed until the light of the sun was completely blotted out. 415Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoSbw72TMBU
The pilot relied only on his instruments while he tried to outrun the storm. Suddenly the wind stopped and sun shown onto him again but he hadn’t yet escaped the storm, as it continued to rage all around him. The pilot was astonished to find himself in a sort of eye in the storm, very unusual behavior for a sandstorm. He flew around the edge of the eye and noticed that the storm, or at the very least the eye, wasn’t moving at all, it was as if this place was the origin of the storm. 415Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb13Y915Tqs
A bolt of lighting struck at the center of the eye and drew the pilot’s attention. A single pillar rose tall above the dunes and atop that pillar a figure stood. Cloaked in black and gold with his hands outstretched the figure was struck by another bolt of lightning. The pilot veered toward the center of the eye and his gaze was transfixed onto the dark figure as he stood unaffected by the lightning. 415Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRtK5poiMjM
The figure lifted his arms high above his head and again lightning struck, but this time the bolt lingered. The figure had caught the lightning and held it in his hand. In an instant, he turned and threw the bolt at the plane, like a warrior would throw a spear. The lightning struck the plane and the engine stalled and began to smoke. The pilot tightly gripped the flight stick with both hands and tried to bring the plane into a crash landing. But it was to no avail, as he quickly reentered the sandstorm. For a few moments more he remained airborne in the storm, but inevitably, the plane crashed into the sandy earth and the pilot lost consciousness.415Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnAvqIBxAJQ
“Joseph!” a voice whispered.415Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcFm0SYVGQg
The pilot found himself standing in complete darkness, a void stretching endlessly.415Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡblZkc1hvWr
“Joseph!” the voice whispered again.415Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6KMZIvalzy
“Yes, my Lord?” The pilot fell to his knees at the recognition of his name.415Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdqQNUp25aH
But as he kneeled he found that he was kneeling in water up to his waist. The smell wasn’t right, however, and he scooped up some of the liquid in his hand. It was not water, but blood, Joseph was kneeling in a vast sea of blood.415Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡK813MjL1Xw
“Behold Joseph, look upon these things that I will show you and tremble, for they are a sign of what has been and what will soon be.” The voice said softly.415Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGPyP53hBPs
A light appeared in the black sky in the shape of a ring, like the sun during an eclipse. The light was soft but it illuminated the sights before him. A little in the distance, he saw a calf jumping in the air and looking at the ground. At his feet lay a viper and it lunged and snapped at the feet of the beast. The two beasts fought endlessly with one striking the other, but neither beast overcame their opponent. Joseph turned and looked to his left and he saw a pillar of gold rising high, like a great tower. But a flame came down and engulfed the golden tower. It burned hotly causing the tower to melt and mix with the sea of blood, eventually cooling and hardened into road made of blood and gold. 415Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRizgI7XxdZ
Joseph then looked to his right and he saw a pregnant woman layed on a marble altar, she was dead. From the womb of the dead woman, the child emerged and fell into the sea of blood. Joseph began to run towards the child to catch it, but when he reached down to pull him from the sea, the child had turned to stone. He sadly set the stone child in the bosom of his mother and turned around. In front of him, a large tree appeared, leafless, with seven branches and a bright red fruit hanging from each branch. Underneath the tree, a man in kingly garb held one of the fruits in his hand, with a single bite taken from it. His eyes were closed and he began to sing;415Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5h5GrB2azX
“The Sands now before you, is where the world has died. 415Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwOL8qgaSrv
No river or well is found there, not a drop of rain in the sky.415Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiEwKCJcJHF
When all that’s left is dust, Will Blood quench your thirst?415Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1cDwtQXFWi
No woman bearing child, no maiden given birth.415Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLUpvp72L7f
The absence of life before you, is the fruit of all your work.”415Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡL5PzX8aHbk
The man paused and looked up at Joseph.415Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZdTKdQ6X45
“What are you doing in my dream?”415Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLztHtkmkY8
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