I brought this on myself, I know that. I dug too deep, not realizing that some things should just stay buried. I have sat here for who knows how long trying to justify it. You are going to pay for my sins, for the horrors I will inflict upon this cosmos. It’s not something I can stop anymore, it’s something that I must do. I just hope that someone will find this audio log and understand why. . . why I did what I did. While I still have my mind - if I have hurt you - I’m sorry.
I’m sure you didn’t deserve what befell you, and if you have the chance to stop me then do it. Put an end to my pain and yours. I’m going to leave this little log here with my notes. Make sure that you don’t repeat my mistakes.
Log 1:
Today is April 3rd, 1990. At least I still think it’s the third? Not sure in all honesty. It depends on how long I’ve been knocked out, or if I time traveled or God knows what. Alright, this is pretty confusing- for me and whoever ends up listening to this.
I will start at the beginning. My name is Trevor Zelman. I am an archeologist from Phoenix, Arizona. I don’t know where I am. I think recounting my adventure so far might help me get a grip on the situation. Maybe not find a way out, but I can organize my thoughts. Five weeks ago, I was contacted by a colleague of mine from Princeton University. He told me that a person by the name of Nathan Selznick had stumbled upon an unexplored cave off the coast of Nicaragua.
Nathan is a recreational diver and wanted to explore a shipwreck down there, the S.S. Strongtide, a U.S. destroyer said to be sunk sometime during World War II. No one knows why it sunk or what ship killed it no one knows why it was in Nicaragua in the first place.
Nathan made a hobby out of searching for ghost ships and went down there for a weekend. But, when he was diving, he saw the entrance to a cave in the side of an oceanic trench, just below the ship.
After exploring the vessel itself, he decided to grab a fresh oxygen tank and take a cursory look at the cave, a cave that the locals had not seen or known about at all. Instead of doing the rational thing and getting a diving buddy, he went in right away, noting that it became murky the closer he got to the entrance.
He entered the cave and wormed his way through a series of tight crevices, emerging to find an air pocket and plenty of walking space in a gray cavern. Climbing out of the water and looking around, he found an odd man-made structure off to the side of the cavern. The pictures he took of the structure itself were low quality and only illuminated by his flashlight.
The walls of it were consistent with Mesoamerican architecture, particularly from the Aztecs, but there was something else in the cave. . . something that neither he nor I could explain. On one of the walls sat a mural of sorts. It depicted humanoid figures bowing to an abomination of eldritch appearance. The creature was roughly five times the size of a normal man, with long claws and lengthy arms.
Since the carving had eroded over time, it is hard to determine whether the legs of the creature were shrouded in a sort of mist or it wore a long gown. Long spikes or tentacles sprouted from its head and it wore a crooked, sharp-toothed smile. The eyes were crudely etched circles. The picture of this creature was not consistent with depictions of any other known deity from Aztec or other Mesoamerican mythologies. At least none that I had seen.
Nathan wanted to stay but described a pressure in the air, as though the cave did not want him to be there. My buddy told me that Nathan didn’t spook easily, he was an explorer at heart, but this scared him. He was spooked and made his exit as quickly as possible. Once he made it to shore, he immediately phoned my colleague at the university.
I was skeptical at first. While the Aztecs were not my particular field of study, I did have a few friends that specialized in it. One of my close friends, Richard Colt, told me outright that the photos sent over were an impossibility. “The Aztecs took art very seriously. It was engraved into their culture so thoroughly that even their military was influenced by it.” Richard said, “These cave drawings are too crude. Now it’s possible that it was done by an individual artist or by a different group in another time, but it is not consistent with any historical artwork I’ve seen.”
Hitting a dead end with Richard, I sought out another expert on Mesoamerican history, Naia Xiao. Naia was a former flame of mine that complained about me going off the grid too often. I’ve always been a bit independent, too much so for most of my employers.
I tend to leap before I look, probably what led me to be here in the first place. Anyway, the relationship didn’t last but we kept in touch, and that connection was about to pay off, or so I hoped.
“That’s Camazotz. Or that would be my guess.” Naia told me. For reference, Camazotz is a Mayan deity. It’s a big bat death God thing. Naia thought that the images were fake at first and that I was using some made-up discovery to try and get back into her life. In hindsight, it probably wouldn’t have been a half-bad attempt.
After convincing her of its validity she started tossing theories at me. Either it was Camazotz or some previously undiscovered God. The fact that it was found in a cave helped give some weight to her theory. She even joked that there might have been a secret cabal dedicated to whatever this thing was.
The only inconsistency with all of our theories was the location. Unless there was a concealed entrance on the surface, no one was getting into that cave without an oxygen tank and goggles. We spit-balled for a few hours and eventually labeled this being ‘The Entity*,’* just ominous enough to make it exciting. But, again, all we had were theories at that point. I had no idea what this thing might actually be.
I realized after a couple of weeks that there was no real way to know unless I looked for myself. So, I grabbed my trusty pack and booked a flight the following week. Was it financially viable to look for this thing in hopes of stumbling across some previously undocumented religion? Not in the slightest.
Nonetheless, I arrived late at night and caught a boat out the next day. Some of the locals agreed to bring me out to the same spot they brought Nathan and I even convinced them to let me borrow some of their gear, as a scuba kit was not a part of my normal repertoire. For a generous fee of course.
Already being over budget and without preamble, I went looking for that cave all by myself. Now, I’m sure a lot of you are not trained divers, and I’m not either. Suffice it to say, it was unpleasant. My gag reflex was not a fan of the regulator in my mouth. My mask wasn’t fitted right either. I was in a hurry and not exactly swimming in cash, so I had to make concessions. I was driven to find out whatever this thing was and investigate that structure.
Anyway, I found the crevice quite easily from Nathan’s map and worked my way inside without issue. Dear Selznick forgot to mention how cold the water was inside the cave; I was shivering by the time I pulled myself out. It took me a few minutes to pull the gear off and get my bag out of the waterproof sack I stuck it in. I brought quite a bit of equipment with me, including two floodlights.
Was it easy diving with so much weight strapped to me? No, not really. But I don’t think this venture was worth it at all. Again, hindsight.
I set up the lights and was able to get a full look at the cave. It was small, only around thirty-eight square meters. Four hundred or so square feet for my fellow Americans. The rock was slimy and covered in green moss.
The only two things of note were the structure and the carving on the wall. I approached the carving first, taking more detailed images of it with my camera and with better lighting. I had looked through the journals we have on artifacts from the Mayan and Aztec civilizations, but neither art style matched this. . . thing. Something caught my eye on the carving, something Nathan probably didn’t see, if only because of his bad lighting.
In the left eye of the eldritch being, inside the sizable hole, there was a small reflection of light. I put on a pair of gloves and grabbed a pair of tweezers from my kit. I removed the glint from the eye and studied it. To my astonishment and horror, it looked to be a fingernail. A completely intact fingernail, still pearly white, with small dark specs.
I looked in the hole again with a flashlight and made another discovery. . . blood. The eyes of the creature were filled with blood. Blood that is probably thousands of years old. Blood kept perfectly preserved in this small cave. I was at a loss for words.
I stupidly decided to look around the structure next. While I was cautious to disturb the foundation of the rocks, it seemed sturdy enough to start poking around. I quickly found a small entrance further back in the structure, it was obscured by moss and vines, not the type of vines you would find in this part of the world.
I pushed my way inside and found, to my shock, only a single mirror. It was perfect. I don’t know how you can do a mirror wrong in the first place, but the glass seemed to glow. It stood on its own, a perfect circle hovering in the middle of the room.
I cautiously approached it trying to move around the side to see what was keeping it up. To my utter shock, the mirror kept turning to face me. It moved back and forth, up and down as I moved around it. I don’t imagine that you’ve ever run into something that completely broke all laws of physics. I swear that it seemed almost sentient.
I’ve seen some weird things in my time but this takes the prize. I’m not usually one for profanity but fuck, I swore like a sailor when it first moved!
Anyway, I was about to go back out and grab my bag, the one containing all of my equipment, when the vines around the entrance sprang into action. They wrapped around themselves and made a tight net around the entrance. They were taut as a bowstring. I cut my finger trying to rip them apart to escape. When that failed, I sat there, in the darkness, just waiting.
It took me a full hour to move again. When I finally mustered up the courage, I turned to face the mirror, and I swear it had gotten closer. I approached the wretched thing and, seeing no other way out of my predicament, reached out and touched it.
What I felt next was indescribable torment and horror. It was as if my body had been ripped asunder, torn apart, and rebuilt a hundred times. Everything was a field of blue, it was as if I was spinning through existence itself. My ears heard color and I tasted sound. It felt like I was underwater, my ears hearing nothing but a rushing waterfall. The agony was endless, it was mind-breaking. Eventually, the blackness took me.
When I next awoke, I found myself here. It took a bit to orient myself once I woke up, I hope that’s understandable. Believe me when I tell you that nothing on Earth compares to the wonder of this place.
The walls and ceiling are a peculiar copper color. The room itself is a large dome with a green carpeted floor. In the center seems to be a raised platform with a very complex telescope. It is also that weird rosy copper. The dome is closed so I don’t quite know what it would be pointing at. Around the dome, I’ve noticed some more oddities. There are loveseats and recliners made out of. . . I can only describe them as a starry void. Not sure if I should touch those. As well as what looks to be a computer of sorts, again, all copper.
There’s a series of keys with weird symbols, I can’t make out what they mean. The screen is twice the size of me.
It’s silent in here. No sound other than the sound of my voice. I’m going to check out that door and see what else I can find.
Log 2:
That door was heavy. I’m outside now. And I don’t know what the fuck is going on. From the outside, the building looks like a simple observatory, but this place is. . . wow. I’ll try and describe it. I’m in a clearing. Around me is a dense forest of bamboo. There’s a cool mist in the air, I can see mountains in the distance. The ground is made entirely of black obsidian rock. There is definitely a light source coming from above the mist. What is that?
Hmm, glowing red lines are moving throughout the rocks. They’re perfectly straight in some areas and not in others. They’re pulsating and giving off a glow. They look like they’re part of the stone. Fuck, those rocks are sharp.
I’m going to try and move to the other side of the clearing. Someone built this place, and that means people. Well, maybe aliens or something. I don’t know. This place is going to be good for my career, I’ll tell you that for nothing.
Oh, I see a river running through the rocks. It’s more like a stream. Wow, that is. . . that is interesting. I don’t know if this is water, it’s so reflective, like a liquid mirror. Ugh, it feels like slime! Not quite desperate enough to drink this, at least not yet.
You know, as much as I love my job, I’m not entirely sure I’m going to continue it once I get home. Damn, these rocks are slick. I’m moving further down. I can hear bugs and birds, so that’s something. Honestly, it’s comforting to hear anything other than the sound of my. . . what was that?
There’s this low-pitched whistling. If I didn’t know better, I’d say it was like growling. It’s moving now. Moving ahead of me. Fuck, there’s another. Could be a predator marking its territory. I’m going to try and move back to the observatory. Perhaps that big metal door was in place for a reason.
Something just dashed behind those trees. It was so fast that I barely caught a glimpse. Dammit, I’m just going to run back. If someone else finds this log along with my dead body. . . I wish you the best of luck. . . Fuck! Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!
Log 3:
I’m not a religious man. I never believed in God or some divine purpose. I was not raised with religion in my life and thought that I was fine with that. But you know, even those of us that are not men of faith will turn to a higher power in our darkest moments.
When we’re alone in the dark, confronted by the unknown. And I finally had my moment. I’ve finally realized where I am. I’m in Hell! That stupid mirror was a portal to Hell and now I’m stuck here.
They stopped clawing at the door a little while ago, the demons. Big black things with red eyes and bladed tendrils. Six limbs and without mouths. Just those fucking red eyes in that black silhouette. Their hair moved on its own, they looked like snake tails, they certainly moved like them. They stood like a man and ran like beasts.
I don’t know how I survived, they moved so damn fast. I felt them on my heels the whole way. It was almost like they wanted to corral me in here. Like a pig in a pen.
It finally clicked. That’s what that thing was, the thing on the wall. It was one of those. Those Aztecs or Mayans or whatever, they worshiped or feared that thing.
God, I thought I was brave. I thought that I was a badass, diving into the unknown. Just give me a hat and a whip and call me Indiana! So fucking stupid. I locked myself in here and I cried. I cried for hours. And now I don’t know what to do. I don’t have water or food. I’m going to die if I stay here and do nothing. I know that. I’ll dehydrate or something. What a pathetic way to go.
Log 4:
Alright. Making these recordings is the only real way I can document my thoughts. Screw scientific conduct and however many people end up listening to this. I just need to put my thoughts back together. The way I see it, I am in a unique situation. Those things outside were definitely the same beings from the cave, that much is obvious. That means one of two things.
One, they came from our world and were trapped here by the Aztecs or Mayans. If this is true then this might be a jail of some kind. Maybe a pocket dimension separate from our universe? The sun also doesn’t seem to set here so there’s no day and night cycle. My watch is the only way I’ll be able to keep the passage of time.
By my estimates, it’s April sixth or seventh right now.
Given the unfortunate way the human body works, I have only a day or two before I’m screwed. I’m already parched. Worst case scenario I’ll go back outside and try to drink that silver water. It’s not a perfect solution, but it’s something.
If whoever built this place did trap those Entities here, it might be best for me to keep the door locked and just wait for death. It would probably be for the best, just in case those things are able to escape through here.
The other possibility is that they are not from our world and instead have come from wherever this place is. If this is the case then I might have a shot of going home. If I get this telescope working then maybe I can use the stars to find out where the hell I am.
The lack of a day and night cycle will make that a bit more difficult, but it’s worth a shot. Either I make it out of here or I die. Not much of a choice. If I do die then I would at least like to know that I did everything within my power to escape.
One other thing that I’m now realizing is the Entities are not the same size as they were on the wall. Those things were five times the size of a person while these things were maybe three times the size of a normal person. I can use that to my advantage. I can either find something in here to use as a weapon or forge something out of the surrounding trees. I’ve heard that sharpened bamboo is particularly painful.
Any way you slice it, I’m going to have to figure out this telescope thing, which means taking a crack at that computer. I’m not technologically illiterate, but I’m no genius either. So, we’ll see how it goes. If I have something to report. . . then I guess I will.
Log 5:
Mm. So the silver water is in fact drinkable. It’s delicious actually. Have you ever been able to taste nutrients? Cause, I think I can taste em’. It’s like this stuff is food and water at the same time, a drinkable IV drip or somethin’. Mm. That is good! Fucking fantastic.
I think that. . . I think that I’m going to try and get back with Naia when I get back. It was nice just shooting the shit with her again. In all honesty, I never really stopped caring about her. I just loved my work too much. But, while all this is very exciting, I think it’s enough for a lifetime. I’ll just get home and take up a teaching position or something. I think I’m done playing explorer.
Maybe I can sell the location of this place and make millions. Oh, there’s an idea- haha! It’s funny how easily a full stomach can lift your spirits. This stuff is like refreshing jelly.
Oh, if you’re worried about the demon creatures then don’t be. I can see em’ sitting at the edge of the forest.
Hey guys!
Yeah, they don’t come any closer unless I actually move about a hundred steps from the front door. Not sure why; don’t really care at the moment. I took a look at the computer and. . . yeah, keys make no fuckin’ sense to me. I could probably figure it out if I had enough time. Good thing this stuff is drinkable, it’ll give me some more time to figure it out.
Vitamin D deficiency might be an issue since the sun here seems to be pretty weak. That is if this is a sun at all and not some giant terrarium lamp. Maybe I’m just made my way into the equivalent of someone’s lizard cage.
Anyway, back to the computer!
Log 6:
This is amazing! I can see it. I can see it all. Okay, I gotta calm down. I’m too excited. I finally figured something out in this stupid place! It took me a few hours to get a hand on what it does, but I’m in awe. My colleagues will never believe me if I don’t show them proof.
Then again, I may never make it out of here alive. . . but I think it’s worth it now. I’ve made the discovery of a lifetime. . . maybe.
Stop, focus. I think that this place can observe all of reality. Yes, I’m serious. I was messing around with the computer and it had a bunch of filters that I didn’t get at first. It wanted the date, time, universe number, and ‘spatial coordinates.’
I thought that this was a joke at first, but then I started typing in random numbers, thankfully this place still uses our numerical system, and boom. It took me a long time to get something, but, by some stroke of luck, I found a planet designated ‘Jypseris’ in universe twelve. The trick is that the date doesn’t go by our dating system, BC vs AD and all that, it goes by the date since the beginning of time itself!
Maybe if I play around with this, I’ll be able to find Earth again. Maybe if I find it. . . maybe I can go home. But that brings me to something else. . . I’m sure that I’m not on Earth anymore. I may not even be on our planet’s same plane of existence. So, get this, if I type in a time and not a universe number or location, it gives me eight-hundred results.
There are eight hundred different universes, realities, or however it works. They’re all laid out but not lined up directly side by side. They’re all represented by this blue river thing, the center universes being brighter than the ones on the edge. Some are closer together than others.
The computer has them all labeled, each one further away from the center going up in numerical order. The center is one, the one on the left that’s closest is two, then three on the right, then four on the left, etcetera.
Finding Earth is going to be like a needle in a haystack. No, a haystack has a limit. I have to find one tiny planet in a specific time period while sifting through all of infinity.
It might take years to narrow it down. . . God, I might be here for a very long time.