and he saw other forms , and did not know if they were sculpted , or painted , or part of the ether through which he passed - a forest falling into the sea , apes , apples , croziers , men and women , a shroud , a sword , pyramids and colossi , ziggurats and juggernauts , ships that swam underwater , weird shining screens which seemed to convey all knowledge , all communication ... ezio also recognized not only the apple and the staff , but also a great sword , and the shroud of christ , all carried by figures who were human in shape , but somehow not human .