novelraw Chapter 1177: The Mysterious Island
Chapter 1177: The Mysterious Island
After seeing the island, they didn’t immediately dock.
The Providence and Excellence slowed as they approached the island.
From above, Hunter and Winter circled, as they seemed to be observing the island as well.
As the ships moved around the island, the crew finally spotted a dockyard jutting out from the shoreline. It was weathered and broken, clearly abandoned, but its structure proved it had once been used before the apocalypse.
Under Shane’s command, the two ships eased into the dockyard, ropes thrown and anchors dropped.
Thud...
The wood groaned under the weight, but it held... Just looking from the deck, they could see broken crates, rusted tools, and weathered planks scattered across the pier.
Shane gave the order. "Not everyone will go ashore."
The crew immediately understood.
The Providence and Excellence could not be left behind unprotected. Even if they have Dragons stuck to it, they wouldn’t be enough.
Mystra, the leader of the Elves, stepped forward...
"I’ll protect this place."
Despite being elves, it seemed that she didn’t really like that island’s vibe and decided to stay in the dockyard with the rest of the elves.
Soon, she was already taking command of those who would remain behind.
Under her leadership, the defenders began fortifying the docked ships... cannons angled outward, barricades raised, and sharpshooters stationed along the rails.
A perimeter was established quickly, ensuring that if anything came from the sea or forest, the ships would not be caught unprepared.
Shane then took his time but in the end, he still gathered the team that would explore.
He would lead them himself, accompanied by Chaloem, Shinja, Layla, Tundra, Lysandra, Lily, Elsa, Travis’ Clone, and Natalie. Each of them carried their own weight, their skills were also sharpened by countless battles, and he had no need to worry about them even if they were in a pinch.
They had the ability to protect themselves.
Together, they stepped off the dock and onto the island.
Shane then looked back at the ships he had left behind...
They were still setting up their defensive barriers, and soon, they started placing traps around in case of an ambush.
Even the Warden Units were spread out just in case they were needed for fast deployment...
Then, after seeing the dragons overhead, Shane felt a bit more confident to leave the team behind.
"Let’s go... Stay vigilant. We don’t know what’s in here..." Shane said as he led the chosen team down the dock.
Their boots thudded against the damp wood, then sank into the sand as they stepped onto the island. The air was heavy with salt and the faint scent of greenery, but strangely, no birds called, and no insects buzzed.
The silence pressed against them, and it wasn’t a good sign.
"Don’t be shy and use all your Detection Skills to find anything suspicious or useful information..." Shane said.
"I’m trying... But... There’s nothing." Natalie muttered.
"We should just continue for now. If there’s a hidden laboratory here, it should be difficult to find or something."
They advanced cautiously, weapons ready, senses sharp.
Soon, the dockyard opened into a path overgrown with vines and moss.
Broken barrels lay scattered, and collapsed walls hinted at structures that once stood here.
Yet there were no bodies, no bones, not even the remains of zombies.
"This is weird," Shane muttered. "Maybe this place was abandoned before the virus spread?"
No one could really answer that question.
For now, the group pressed deeper.
They found remnants of stone foundations, shattered roofs, and rusted lanterns.
There was also a broken well at the center of what might have been a small settlement.
The water inside was stagnant and definitely not safe for consumption... Still, it was as if the people who once lived here had simply vanished.
They searched further inland, expecting to find either survivors or hordes of zombies.
Instead, only silence greeted them.
No wildlife stirred in the underbrush. No footsteps echoed but their own.
The ruins stretched on, and it was lifeless and haunting.
The silence was oppressive, and it didn’t take long before someone spoke up.
Thud!
Tundra grunted, kicking at a rusted lantern. "This is boring. I was expecting hordes of zombies, not... empty ruins."
Layla smirked faintly. "You’d rather be swarmed? I’ll take boring over cleaning blood off my boots again."
Shinja’s hand rested on Stormblade’s hilt and scanned the treeline. "Don’t let the quiet fool you. Places like this... they’re traps waiting to spring."
Natalie agreed to that...
"Still, it’s unsettling. No wildlife, no undead, no other people. It’s like the island itself doesn’t want us here."
Lysandra crouched near a broken wall, brushing moss from the stone. "Or maybe something erased everything. Look at these foundations... they weren’t destroyed in battle. People left... or were forced to leave."
Chaloem, the monk, also finally spoke... "Absence can be more dangerous than presence. Emptiness breeds suspicion. Stay centered."
At this time, Lily glanced upward...
"Mhmm... The wind feels strange too. It’s moving, but it carries no sound. No birds, and only leaves rustling. Maybe this is not the island we’re looking for."
Shane listened to them all and nodded.
"You’re right. This isn’t natural. Just keep your Detection Skills active. If there’s something hidden here, we’ll find it. If there’s really none, they we’ll just leave this place.
Tundra muttered under his breath, "If there’s nothing, I’ll blow up the ruins just to make some noise."
Layla shot him a look. "Don’t even think about it. We’re here to investigate, not redecorate with craters."
Natalie chuckled softly as she looked at Tundra.
Just like that, the team spread out, examining the area. Some overturned crates revealed tools long rusted, others contained scraps of cloth eaten away by time.
Then, they found a collapsed watchtower that leaned against the treeline, its wood was already brittle and splintered.
Shane crouched near a broken pillar, brushing away moss to reveal faint carvings.
The markings were old, predating the apocalypse.
Whoever had lived here had culture, structure, and clear purpose...
This was definitely part of a large settlement before.
But where were they now?
The silence gnawed at them. Every step revealed more ruins, but no signs of battle, or corpses...
The group pressed on, reaching what looked like the remains of a marketplace.
Stone stalls lay broken, scattered tools rusted into the ground...
There was also a toppled sign lying half‑buried in the sand with its letters worn away by time.
"Nothing," Shane said quietly. "No zombies. No survivors. No wildlife. Just ruins."
The others exchanged uneasy glances.
Shane frowned...
"We’ll push a little further inland. If we still find nothing, we return to the ships. I don’t want us spread too thin."
The team nodded as they advanced.
***
Meanwhile, as Shane’s group pressed deeper into the ruins, the silence remained...
Their footsteps echoed faintly against broken stone, but nothing else stirred.
Yet, unseen by them, a small figure crouched among the shadows of the trees.
It was humanoid, no taller than a child, with leathery wings folded tight against its back and small horns protruding from its forehead.
Its eyes gleamed faintly in the dim light as it observed the humans silently.
The creature did not move, did not breathe loudly, and remained completely undetected.
As Shane and his team advanced, more of these figures appeared.
One after another, they slipped from behind ruined walls, from the branches above, and from the cracks in the earth...
Crack... Crack... Crack...
Their wings twitched, their claws appeared, but they made no sound except for the movement of the dirt and trees.
At first, only a handful watched. Then dozens. Soon, the shadows were filled with hundreds...
The humans were being watched from every angle, yet they had no idea.
The creatures lurked patiently...
They were waiting, gathering, and surrounding.
Finally, Shane’s group reached the other side of the forest.
The ruins gave way to a clearing, and beyond it lay the heart of the island... it was the territory where these creatures ruled.
Natalie slowed... "Wait... do you feel that?"
Layla’s gaze narrowed. "Something’s here. Watching."
Shane raised his hand, signaling the group to halt. His Aura Suppression pulsed outward, but instead of weakening enemies, it revealed them.
From the shadows, dozens of glowing eyes flickered to life.
Then the team saw them.
Small, winged humanoids with horns and jagged teeth stepped into view.
Their numbers were huge! It was not a handful, but hundreds. They had been there all along, silently encircling the humans as they walked deeper into the forest.
"Imps..." Shane muttered, almost disbelieving.
The group repeated his words...
"Imps? Wait... Those are demons..."
Tundra cursed under his breath. "Damn it... we walked right into their nest."
The imps hissed in unison...
Soon, the forest seemed to close in, since every path was blocked by their swarming forms!
"Too late to escape... We’re surrounded." Shane frowned.
They had finally noticed the enemy’s presence, but by then, they were already trapped!
However, it was at this time that Natalie felt that it was her time to shine!