They stood in the small mine shaft elevator that led up to the neutral city. Like a small metal coffin separating them from the outside world. Caeus shuddered when the metal grate in front of him was locked shut. He could only dimly make out the shape of Mereum and the Blessed standing behind her like some sort of bodyguard, and the elevator operator who he’d barely gotten a look at before they were swathed in darkness.
A large whirring noise started from behind him, and Caues lost his balance, stumbling into Mereum who smirked at him; raising her arm to help him catch his balance.
“Thanks.” Caeus mumbled, his voice echoing strangely in the box. He wanted to ask her what the outside world was like, what the land beyond the middle city – with all of its strange and wonderous creatures, or even what the sun was like. But he didn’t want to sound more like an Erebus peasant than he already did. Besides, he didn’t want to see the satisfaction on her face when he admitted to her that he’d never even been to the surface. But still… He wondered and worried what it would be like to experience the open sky, a vast expanse of nothing in the sky instead of the solid assuring expanse of rock surrounding him.
The elevator continued to whir upwards, occasionally jolting and giving his stomach a brief lurch before it righted itself. The metal box gave one final lurch and then the gears whirred to a stop. Light pierced through the cracks in the gate on the front, brighter than any lamplight he’d ever seen. The elevator operator opened the door.
Caeus immediately shuddered his eyes, shying away from the strange, unnatural light. “Gods.” He breathed. No one had ever told him how piercing the sun was, how it went through all the cracks in his hands and seeped into every part of the now exposed elevator, stinging his eyes. It took him a moment to adjust but when he did he looked up to see Mereum standing right outside, wearing that same smirk again. He stepped outside without another word, not about to give her any more satisfaction.
They appeared to be in some sort of enclosed building, but with large glass panes leading to the walkway outside. “Where are we heading?” Caeus asked, realizing he’d just been going along with them like some lost dog. He knew they were meeting the other contestants, but where exactly? Did they all live in Concordia, or were some from the Cradle of the Gods like Mereum?
“We’re meeting them at an inn.” The Blessed said. Caeus opened his mouth to ask for more specifics, but they were already heading for the door that opened up to the city proper. Caeus grabbed his pocket watch, squeezing it as he hurried after them, thinking of his mother. He would do this for her, deal with whatever annoyance, whatever high class fools he had to no matter what. And considering he was going to be in the trial, dealing with a seer and a blessed were soon going to be the least of his worries. Cyclops, harpies, all the creatures that were in the world outside of the cities… He would be facing them soon.
Caeus stepped into the city after them, and the weight, the size of it hit him like a wave when he stepped outside. Concordia was altogether much grander and louder than he had previously imagined. Large white stone buildings similar to the ones in the down below. Only all these buildings were covered in different shades, red, blue, even the occasional purple roof jutting out from the rooftops spanning all the way to the massive wall surrounding the entire city that protected them for all the creatures out there.
Caeus shuddered, once again reminded he would be leaving this place soon. Did they have a safe way to travel to the Cradle of the Gods, or was that part of the trial too? He didn’t know the specifics, no one from the Undercity did – only that it was dangerous beyond measure, only the strongest candidates ever survived. And that at the end of it, you became a blessed, gifted with powers that were individual to each person. It probably wouldn’t be much difficulty for an Blessed to get there, but for a regular human venturing outside of the walls meant death.
A large man bumped into Caeus in the bustle, rudely shoving him aside and scowling down at him. Caeus glared right back, but quickly extracted himself as the Blessed continued to make a swath through the crowd wherever he went. Even here, people were afraid of him. Caeus couldn’t help but noticed how dark everyone’s skin was in comparison to him, bronzed by the sun. Almost everyone up here wore new, fine clothes. And just like the rooftops their dresses and suits were in every color imaginable. There were shops and stalls that showed various weapons, pistols, rifles, knives, and even the occasional enchanted sword. Caeus glanced at a shop bearing a large ring as its insignia, peeking inside to the jewels that decorated the store. Jade, gold, silver, the wealth just in that one store boggled his mind.
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Most people living in Concordia were jewelers and other sorts of craftsmen, working on the finer products their wealthy citizens and the Blessed used. Unlike the Undercity which focused mostly on basic metalwork. Caeus glanced outside at those walls, noticing a strange shimmering light that seemed to surround the entire city.
What is that light?” Caeus asked, above the clamor of the crowded trade district.
“It’s said that the light comes from the heart of the city, from an object of pure power that is only speculated about. The object keeps the worst, the most powerful of the beasts out. And the rest are cut down or shot by the warriors that man the walls or that go out in raiding parties to cull anything that gets to close to the walls.” It was the first time, the Blessed, and not Mereum talked to him directly, and he didn’t take off his eyes off the crowd the whole time. It struck Caeus how he always seemed to be searching for some threat, for something wrong. He supposed that years spent fighting the beasts outside the wall would do that to anyone.
The Blessed, despite their gifts were in charge of protecting the cities, especially from the larger monsters that could sometimes get through the shields surrounding the last bastions of humanity. And from what he’d heard, they often went looking for threats, not sitting outside the cities like guard dogs.
They walked for what seemed like only minutes, but which was probably much longer – Caeus was struck not only by the size of the city, but how well these people lived. A group of children passed him, waving sticks at each other in a mockery of swords. They seemed so alive, so… Happy. Nothing like the dour, broken-down people he was used to. It made him angry, he realized – to see them enjoying life like this. Like there weren’t people living underneath the dirt, toiling away so they could live like this.
“I’m Caeus,” Caeus said, walking up to the Blessed who continued to make an easy path through the crowd, glancing slightly up at him. Despite his annoyance to this people, he couldn’t help but be curious. After all, a real life Blessed was here.
“The name’s Alnor.” He responded.
“Are you part of the trial too?” Caeus asked.
Alnor laughed. “Me?” He snorted. “Hardly, I’m just a bodyguard for the seer, I’m here to ensure that she makes it to the city safely.” Something about the way he said it made it sound like he resented being her bodyguard. Maybe he did, maybe he would rather be out there – fighting with the others. Caeus glanced at Mereum, but she still walked slightly behind them, her head dipped as if she was deep in her thoughts.
“I’ve heard stories about Seers, but is everything they say true?”
“I doubt everything they say about any of us is true. But if you’re asking if she see’s visions, then the answer is yes. If you want to know more, you will have to ask her yourself.” Caeus nodded, and the Blessed suddenly stopped, glancing up at a sign as if to double check they were going the right way, and then headed into a nondescript bar.
Caeus glanced at the sign, a depiction of the two famous sisters clashing swords, the sisters who had descended from the original deity – Kalista and Eirene. Caeus headed in after the Blessed. The bar was clean, almost spotless with two long wooden tables dominating the space rather than the series of smaller ones the lower city preferred. The man behind the counter looked up as they walked in, not seeming at all surprised that an Blessed had just walked into the bar.
“Welcome.” He said, a great booming voice. The other people in the bar immediately got up from their chairs, turning back and bowing slightly. Caeus noticed they were bowing at Mereum, and not the Blessed. Did they revere the seer that much? Just how important was she, this person who had decided he was someone worth testing? Mereum just nodded back in response, and the rest of the people in the bar stood waiting. This wasn’t just some random bar; they all must know Mereum.
“Is the Senator here yet?” Mereum asked. The senators were comprised of twelve prestigious Blessed who ruled all three cities and the army. As if in response, a man opened the door and walked in behind them. Caeus turned. The man had a symbol of wings stitched into his clothing, and wore white and golden leather cloth rather than the armor of the other Blessed.
“Just in time.” Mereum said, eying the Senator as he walked in. The Senator dipped his head slightly. “Mereum.