Book 2, Chapter 16 - Skycloud, the Holy City (1/2)

Chapter 16 - Skycloud, the Holy City

Cloudhawk traveled with the Bloomnettle Merchant Company North for a few days, and then they reached their destination.

“Everyone off, get ready for inspection. We’re about to pass into the elysian lands.”

The caravan guard sounded exhausted. It was to be expected after so long on the road. However, along with exhaustion there was relief in his voice. Cloudhawk felt the cart slow then pulled open the door and joined the others outside. He still wore his mask but had changed into more presentable clothing. At least he didn’t look like a beggar anymore.

No sooner had Cloudhawk’s feet touched the grassy ground than his eyes were struck by the scene before him. They were passing through an enormous canyon with towering mountains on either side. They rose so high it was like their peaks were piercing heaven, tall enough that their peaks were obscured by clouds. The canyon itself was dim since no direct light could reach them.

Cloudhwk had never seen majestic mountains like this in all his life, but that wasn’t what gripped him. His eyes were pasted to the fifty-meter-tall wall before them that blocked their path. The thick wall was different from the ancient mountains to either side, glowing with a dark gold metallic light like it was made from the precious stuff.

It was absolutely huge! The people he saw walking along the ramparts looked as small as ants.

This was the great wall of the elysian lands, one mountain pass among many bestrewn throughout the area that connected the lofty mountains together. It sprawled across the land culminating in a giant circle and acting as the border of the elysian lands. Everything inside was the realm of the gods. Wastelanders had never crossed over, no measure of force could breach the impregnable walls. To the people of the elysian lands their great wall was their greatest defense against the evils of the outside world.

Every pass was guarded by a thousand soldiers.

Bloomnettle Company, as borderland merchants, had special permission to come and go as needed. However, each time they passed the walls they had to allow their goods to be checked. The soldiers had strict orders not to let any elysian goods leave their borders, or allow any banned substances from outside get in – including any suspicious persons. Their insurmountable walls and strict inspection protocols ensured the elysian lands stayed safe.

There was no question they would find Cloudhawk.

He leaned on his disguise as a demonhunter. He made sure to find a reason to show off his token and his ability to use relics. As far as these soldiers knew there had never been a wastelander who had the power of a demonhunter, much less carried a token of the high order. So no one gave him any trouble and instead treated him with the utmost respect.

Getting here sure as hell wasn’t easy! Without the Bloodsoaked Queen’s token he wouldn’t have been allowed to take a single step inside. Now he finally understood why the Queen had laughed at his determination to get here.

He passed inspection and traversed the mighty wall, finally emerging out onto the other side. When he did, suddenly it felt like he’d crossed over into another world. Everywhere he looked the ground was carpeted in green grass and pockets of wildflowers. The mountainsides were thick with trees. Everything was so vibrant, so alive.

Two worlds, separated by one wall.

All the life in the world seemed to be concentrated here. The vast terrain he’d come from was barren and toxic, while before him stretched rolling green hills and a climate perfectly suited for comfort. He wouldn’t have believed it except here it was in front of him. There was no natural explanation that could account for such a dramatic change.

Every seedling was blessed here, fated to grow tall and bear fruit, whereas if it were unlucky enough to exist outside the walls would die before night fell on the first day.

They were only separated by a hundred meters or so. Only a hundred meters made all the difference.

It was like a line of judgment, a wall where life and death were determined, the border between heaven and hell. The walls encircled an area of hundreds of thousands of meters where some supernatural power beyond the scope of human comprehension brought the blasted landscape back from desecration. It stood in defiance of the wastelands on all sides and refused to be swallowed by its filth. No matter who you were the stark difference would shake you to the core. What could be responsible for this but for a miracle hand crafted by the gods themselves?

But Cloudhawk was surprised too early. Once Bloomnettle Company passed through the valley they were met with a fleet of massive ships.

The exquisite vehicles were simple yet refined. Each one was a hundred meters long and made of artfully carved wood. What really stunned Cloudhawk, though, was how the ships moved.

They didn’t float on water. No, instead some inexplicable power lifted them up off the ground where they were suspended in midair. They were all linked together and people passed from one to the other using slides and suspension bridges, creating a floating, bustling town.

What was this place?! The shock Cloudhawk felt couldn’t be expressed in words.

And yet to the elysians this was nothing to get excited about. In fact no one seemed to pay it much attention.

Old Thistle hailed a hovering barge nearby. It floated down and opened its hull whereupon the merchants hustled aboard without a word. Cloudhawk figured this had to be a transportation hub of some kind. These artfully crafted, absolutely gigantic flying ships were a form of mass transit.

Cloudhawk was the farthest thing from a man of culture, but he got the basics.