Genesis

Chapter 45: Planetside

It took Cyren a few minutes to regain his composure. He and his sister were overwhelmed by their return to their planet, a place they thought they would never see again.

"It has been too long," Cyren finally said after a long pause.

"We should discover where it is we have made landing," Aura suggested. I could see the joy on her face, but her ferocity remained. She was eager to reclaim her home.

"Behind us is the forest of Kach'Leon," Cyren began. "In front is the village of Tor'var. Deep within the forest lies Davora, the city of stone. I know exactly where we are."

"South," Aura stated.

"South," Cyren repeated.

"South," I followed comedically.

Nadari chirped, reminding us of her presence and adding to the conversation.

Cyren and Aura both turned to gaze at me while Nadari and I looked back.

"Sorry," I apologized with a laugh.

"Aura and I will travel into the village, collect as much information as we can about the current stance of D'karia."

"Would you mind if I took a look around?" I asked.

"Do as you desire. I will not ask that you stay grounded here. Scope out the land. See for yourself the wonders of D'karia."

I nodded and motioned for Nadari to stay with the siblings and then leapt into the air. Finally, after so long, I was feeling the freedom of the skies again. I spiraled high, reveling in the sensation. It filled me with joy. Nothing in existence was as exhilarating to me as the feeling of flight. After long days, and sometimes nights, of constant walking, trudging along through forests, swamps, and all manner of other places, it was incredible to touch the heavens again.

Obviously, I had done so not ten minutes before, but that was different. It had been required. Now I was doing it of my own choice, knowing that, for the time being, I could go where I pleased.

I wouldn't be gone long. I had to return to Aura and Cyren at some point, probably soon. I needed to know the area that we were in. I had no clue as to what I thought I could be looking for, but Cyren had said something about a city deep in the forest. I would go there first.

I zipped off through the skies. The sunlight glinted off of my armor and made it shimmer around me. I was too high for the reflections to catch the eyes of someone who may be striding below, but, were they to look up, they would be able to see me.

I no longer had the worry of being seen. Here no one knew me, and there was no threat of being found like there could have been on Adjutor – not that Cyren's thoughts on that matter hadn't been anything more than mere paranoia anyway.

The skies parted from my speed, giving way to my forward momentum. I breached the border of the forest in the heights of the sky, in awe of the sea of green that swirled beneath me. The forest was one of the largest I had ever seen. The trees shot into the sky, and filled the horizon from east to west, and further south than I was able to see from my current altitude. I had reached such speeds that it would be impossible for someone to catch more than a flicker of my presence. Before long I could see a grand, stone castle poking high into the sky. Moments later, the rest of the city folded into view.

The first peculiarity to catch my eye was a heap of crumpled stone. It stood between two parts of a broken wall. Some small constructs had recently been built nearby to leverage some of the larger stones. Some people worked diligently to remove the rubble.