The Elementalist: Sky City (Book One)

Chapter Fourteen: Sky City

Wade watched them go, worried deeply about his two friends. Soon a sword nearly beheads him, though, and he raised his own, worried about his own safety again.

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Getting to the top of the tower was simple enough, and despite the weight of holding Fred, Ben did so with relative ease. He'd never flown this high before, but it was natural to him, nonetheless. The hard part came once they had landed.

The top of the tower was a narrow circle, with a spiraling gold design on the floor. Looking up, there were still what seemed like miles to go before they finally reached the hole in the middle that served as the entrance to Sky City. The wind screamed violently at them from this high, threatening to push them off the edge every second they wasted.

Ben took a deep breath, and Fred wrapped her arms tighter around him. She enjoyed the comfort of the floor they stood on while she could.

"That's a long way," Fred said nervously, her eyes drifting over the edge of the tower to the ground far below them, which was also a long way.

"You're not wrong... alright, here it goes."

This time, Fred closed her eyes tight the second they were off. Being scared of heights was one thing, but as high as they were going... it was far, far worse.

"Are we there yet?" she yelled through the rush of wind.

"Not yet."

"Soon?"

"Almost there," Ben yelled back, the gale force of the wind carrying his voice away.

The weightless climb went on for what seemed forever in Fred's mind. Her racing heart beat so fast that even Ben could feel it against his chest. She'd long forgotten how cold she was without the white, wool jacket—the fear of falling replacing all other senses—and she tried to envision a happy place to take her mind off the endless air between them, Sky City, and the ground.

Remembering the warm sand of the arena, and the glory she felt defeating bigger, stronger opponents, Fred's mind stayed in these memories until she jolted as her feet touched the ground. Opening her eyes, she looked into Ben's bright blue ones.

"And we're here," he chuckled nervously.

"Oh, thank god."

Her hands shook as she released the death-grip she'd had on him. Taking a few steps and breathing deeply, she calmed herself.

Meanwhile, Ben spun as he took in the surroundings. Past the ceremonial landing circle, they'd flown through was a vast labyrinth of tall, white buildings. Many were as tall as skyscrapers, and all were gorgeous. Despite years of being abandoned, they somehow looked brand new, with a shiny texture that glinted in the sunlight. The streets, which look much like the ancient road they had traveled on, were macabre, empty, and left a disturbed feeling in Ben's stomach. Despite the powerful, unrelenting wind that accompanied their flight, the top of the city was relatively lacking in this wind. There were slight breezes, but they were calm–soothing. The calmness with the isolation chilled Ben to see. It all seemed very unnatural in a way, like a jewel in the sky that should be cultivated and adored, but that had been bitterly left all alone. In the farther distance was a building even more elaborate than the rest, with far more gold and larger towers. It was the jewel of the jewel, the palace of Sky City.

"That has to be where the core is," Ben pointed at it.

Fred punched him lightly.

"You don't know where the core is?" her voice showed her frustration.

"Well... no. Then again, I kind of thought we'd have plenty of time when we got up here to look."

Both of their minds flashed quickly to Wade and everyone else down below, fighting for their lives in a battle that could only go so long in the rebellion's favor. Lost in the amazement of all there was to see, it was easy to let the mind wander.