The Trinity War (Book 3 of the Trinity series)

Chapter 11

Rowan led us through the halls of the palace. Everything was silent, except for the rushing sounds of the waterfalls that echoed around the stone halls. I myself remained silent as I admired the beauty of the palace.

The outer halls of the palace reminded me of those that were in Trinity High. There were large white marble pillars that supoorted decorative white arches that had designs of vines molded into them. The spaces between the pillars gave the most spectacular view of the kingdom below. From this height, I could see whatever was going on in the kingdom. I could see people bustling about, waking up since it was now after dawn. The kingdom was coming to life.

On the other side of the hall, where the solid walls were, there hung many paintings and murals. They all depicted some sort of plant life: the forest painted in vibrant colors, flowers painted with extreme detail, animals of all different kinds. I felt as if I were walking through a museum exhibit on the Amazon Forest. But there was something about the paintings that made them almost lifelike; they looked almost as if they would be real to the touch. It was incredibly mesmerizing.

There was one particular mural that grasped my attention. It was the longest one we had seen so far, stretching a couple dozen feet long. It depicted what looked to be the history of the land of Sylvanterra. Since we were walking in the opposite direction, the first drawing I saw was of the land of Sylvanterra as I saw it now: with people bustling about their daily lives. But as we went further back, I could see that the mountain that Sylvanterra had been built on became more and more green. There were more trees and less signs of civilzation the further we went back. The buildings that had been built were different looking, more primitive. They looked to be made of dirt and clay rather than the beautiful stone marble that they were made of now. The very last, or the very first, painting was of the mountain standing alone, with no civilization. There was a single man drawn at the base of the mountain, with a dark brown cloak, a long brown beard and sparkling green eyes. This must have been the first earth master, the one who had discovered the civilization in the first place.

We continued to walk for another few minutes before we reached a set of double doors that were framed with green vines that had exotic purple flowers budding out of them. There were two guards standing on either side of the doors dressed in thick padded leather armor and holding sharpened spears. I glanced at Gerrard, who shrugged. The two guards saluted Rowan and then they opened the doors for us, revealing the most exquisite room I had ever seen.

The floors were, once agan, made of white marble that was shone to perfection. There were statues on either side of the room carved out of white, weathered stone. I recognized one of the statues as the man in the mural we had passed earlier. I squinted to read the plaque, but realized that it was in a different language.

The ceiling was painted colorfully to depict forest life. There were trees and flowers, animals peeking out from around them, and the great Amazon River which flowed through it all. All around the ceiling, hanging from the sides, were vines with brightly colored flowers growing on them. There were potted plants everywhere.

At the far end of the room was an elegant throne made of a beautiful wood that gleamed and was carved with delicate leaf designs. There was gold finishing on the feet, back, and arms of the throne and sitting on it was one of the most beautiful women I had ever seen.

The queen had long wavy black hair, tanned brown skin, and almond shaped eyes that were the same color as the soil surrounding the Amazon River. She had high cheekbones, a strong, yet feminine build, and held an aura of intensity and power.

"My Queen, our guests have arrived," Rowan said, bowing down to his knees. Gerrard and I glanced at each other and then bowed as well. When we stood back up, the Queen was dismissing Rowan. He bowed once more and then walked out of the room. When he left, we turned our attention back to the queen, who was now scrutinizing us.