Phloria was desperately holding onto the shoulder of her dear husband while walking to the front door. "No! You are joking Don!"
"I'm sorry, but this is a serious matter and there is not a chance I will miss the send-off…"
Don and Phloria's dejected tones dropped the temperature of the homestead. The unnaturally smooth wooden beams with several metal hangers attached suddenly became a sight Elijah preferred to stare at.
Elijah had walked right past their conversation and began the tedious process of packing his bag. A wool blanket was lazily wound up, while several pairs of clothes were messily folded.
"Was that what the letter was about yesterday?" Phloria asked, leaning onto her lover's chest.
"No… Richter just thought he should refill on potions so he sent a letter… We found out the moment we arrived."
Elijah began to overhear the conversation and was saddened by the idea of Richter and Don finding out their friend had perished on the battlefield the morning of. The body was burned and slashed in so many places that it no longer looked like a body, but pounds of charred flesh and bone reassembled for symbolic purposes. Richter would be joining the group for the send-off as he would be the transporter of the body, and a third original friend known by the name of Conrad Biltview: The Magician.
…
The morning was full of chirping birds, rustling of the leaves, and the slightly moist ground that had not been fully evaporated by the sun. One fact Eijah had noticed while pulling himself onto the familiar open carriage was how humidity was not much of a problem here — as if their altitude was more than two or three thousand feet above sea level. There were not massive amounts of dew after a rainstorm when combined with the radiant sun, especially during the month of planting which came directly after the snow season.
Brown and tan blankets were evenly spread through the carriage where four large leather bags sat in the center. According to Don, the trip was sure to be a little less than three hours, which made Elijah think this Kingdom was far larger than he assumed.
After Don had explained the situation and living arrangements for the next week — a noble household where an old friend of Don resided, as well as a send off in the Grand Park on the third day of the visit — Elijah began to feel a strong desire for exploration and asked a question that had been on his mind.
"Father, what is so dangerous outside the walls?" While he knew the answer to this question, maybe there was something more.
"Beasts who want to do nothing but kill. Whatever you do with your life, understand that going outside the wall will likely end up with you forever leaving us…"
"What about the other kingdoms outside the wall? How do they survive?"
"What? Elijah, there is no such thing as 'another kingdom'." Don explicitly emphasized those words. "Life does not exist outside these walls besides the beasts who only want to kill."
Don was suddenly struck with a fit of confusion that made him question where his son got such a lofty idea.
"Has anyone seen outside the walls besides the hunters?" Elijah kept pushing for more information.
"No! Every single person in this kingdom is in full agreement that there is no life outside the walls, but only beasts! Don't ask any more questions related to this or else people will think you are crazy…"
Suspicion instantly entered the mind of Elijah. In an unknown world where one has been trapped from their oppressors, what are the chances of more life existing outside these walls if an attempt to find life had never been made?
Standing on a passing carriage while slowly trekking the main west road, a man no older than the age of 20 was laughing at his fearful comrades.
In a moment of mystery which had brought a single question into his mind, Elijah yelled at the top of his lungs causing everyone within the vicinity to stare into his black eyes. "I want to explore outside the walls!"
The carriages carrying supplies suddenly came to a halt as many men and women looked at Elijah with disgust. However, between these people, was a white hair and blue-eyed young male that looked like his balls just dropped.
The man had a devious grin on his face as if he had just found his blood brother.
"I have no idea why you are saying that kid… We risk our lives every day for something that isn't even necessary . There is no merit in what we do…" A black haired woman with light gray eyes responded with dismay.
The movement of the surroundings continued, but once again halted…
"My name is Amaris, and I respect you!" The icy man yelled at the top of his lungs as he passed by our carriage.
Moments later, Elijah received a slap to the back of the head.
"If you do that again, you will be locked in your room for an entire week!" His father's tone sent a shiver down his spine, but failed to comprehend his strictness.
'Why was it such a big deal?' Elijah thought to himself.
"Welcome to the Inner West, Can I see your family crest?" The guard started the conversation as soon as the shadows of the tunnel covered the carriage.
Elijah was confused at the sight of a pentagram-shaped emblem being shown. Without being able to see the front of it, It definitely had something to do with magic.
A faint glow radiated from the crest, and moments later the guard signaled for the gate to open. But before the carriage passed through, Don handed the guard 25 silver coins, which is equal to a quarter of a gold coin.
The dark stone tunnel was dimly lit with torches hanging on the walls. The three gates that lined the tunnel receded into the ceiling as we passed through. The reason for three gates was simply more security, but also as a defense measure to trap beasts between two metal walls as hunters threw spells inside an enclosed space.
Elijah's eyes widened in disbelief when he heard his fathers explanation. 'How insidious!'
White light covered the entrance to the inner city, and once the group exited the tunnel, a long and slowly descending road came into view. At the very end on the slowly descending road was a magnificent and grand castle towering over every building as its protector.
Astraea Castle was made of a medium grey stone, and was not completely symmetrical. Four towers erected from the four corners of the rounded and square castle, each one standing at a different height. They were windowless, and topped with an unnaturally smooth wooden-pointed roof. A grandiose castle made of pure and smooth stone, wooden accents, decorated with the emblems of the kingdom, and ornate stone indentations and protrusions.
Floral stone and wood buildings were tightly packed together in a uniform manner. What people thought was their city, truly was a crater from a meteor as the entire city slowly descended to the center.
Each roof slowly matched the height of its neighbor, but conformed to the natural decline of the kingdom. Dozens of ideas related to parkouring through the roofs entered Elijah's adventurous mind.
Moving down the road annoyed Elijah greatly. Constantly, the carriage was forced to slow down to make way for the citizens of Astraea to cross.
"At least the roads are smooth…" Elijah softly remarked.
As the Veran family rode down the wide stone road, they noticed that the streets to the left and right were bustling with people. Expertly made buildings and stone paths were built all the way up on the side of the mountain that gave an amazing view of the entire inner city. However, from Elijah's idea about this kingdom, these sections were the "poorest", and densely populated with the working class.
"So, that is where the whirlpool is?" Elijah was pointing towards the castle with his small hands.
"Yes, although you can't see it right now, the whirlpool is beneath Centerpool, which is where we will be sending off the body of an old friend."
Elijah was able to feel the dejection with every word that came out of his mouth. The only option was to play the card of a child, considering he was one in the first place…
After a two hour ride, the Veran family arrived at a large iron gate that slowly swung open. A burly man wearing a black flared suit greeted the guests.
"Greetings, you must be the Veran family. Please come inside, the maids will take care of your bags." The butler subtly bowed as a greeting.
The small amount of steps to the front door caught Elijah's gaze. Finely shaven, and precisely placed. Nothing like the sparse amounts of stone paths in the outer west. Although, the lack of stone paths was intentional. Over time, hard surfaces impervious to impressions would damage the feet of the animals used for transporting goods. The least the kingdom could do was avoid the problem when necessary.
Moments after walking inside, Elijah looked up and noticed a large chandelier hanging from the ceiling of the third floor. The silver ends curved upward, and held dimly lit candles that looked like they had been burning for ages. A double sided staircase met in the middle of the second floor and split to reach the third floor.
"Elijah? Are you okay?" Phloria was worried by the fountain of saliva dripping from her son's mouth.
'Could his brain be faltering again?' She worriedly thought.
Suddenly, loud footsteps of a tough shoe made its way around the corner. A brown hair brown eyed man stepped forward and bowed to greet its guest. How come a simple looking man can look so good in a finely woven blue suit?
"It is good to see you again, Don and Phloria. And oh my! Your children are to die for! I'm absolutely sure they won't be bored while staying here!"
With a smile, Don replied, "Thank you for your kind greeting George. I'm sure they will have a good time. Now, where can we privately talk about business."
"I see… Follow me. Wilbur, do you mind showing the guests to their rooms?" With a pep in his step, George led Don to the third floor.
"Yes sir." Wilbur fastened his jaw and subtly bowed. "If you would, please follow me to the second floor."
Elijah and his family got settled into their room. Both he and Julian had their private rooms and a shared washroom. While looking outside the window, Elijah noticed a brick wall with windows scattered about.
"Not much of a view huh?"
Knock Knock
Suddenly, while Elijah was laying on his fine quilted bed, a knock was heard at his door. "Who is it?"
A high pitched voice similar to his own came from the other side of the door. "My name is Novius, son of George Weltor. I wanted to say hello."
Creaking open, the door revealed a child slightly taller than Elijah, and one with a dashing jawline.
"Hello, my name is Elijah, how old are you?"
"Almost five!"
"Me too!"
Elijah responded with the same tone, and almost immediately the two were drawn to each other like friends destined to meet.
Julian walked out of his room and joined in the conversation, and after a couple of minutes, Novius led them on a tour of the magnificent estate.