The North Star (Draft)

Chapter 5: The needle that stitched the sky

Sulking about like some child, Aliyah looked at Sally with annoyance and finally turned to observe her surroundings. It was right that they still had much to do to get out of the centermost parts of the City, but having to do it with Sally would be less than pleasant. However, they had gone through quite a bit already so by now she was used to her duo's attitude. "It looks like there's just a bunch of wall around us Sally. It's just like the inside, but with real stars and less music." She took the wrong step and quickly almost fell over, but once again Sally would grab her before she could do so. "Lots of this meteorite everywhere too. Wonder what it's for?" The ground around them seemed dark, but suddenly waves of blue spread just a moment after the Needle lit up. The walls were devoid of torches or lanterns, and they were made of standard grey marble like everything else around them. Seeing would be difficult, but the ground lit up like strobe lights and shimmering water with every moment the Needle lit up. This illumination lasted only about five seconds, while they had to wait for the Needle to flash every thirty.

"There's a path running through the rocks." Sally would say, the whole exterior of the inner rings of the observatory seemed to be a decent amount of size. The wall took a while to curve by the looks of it, so the circumference must be vast. Either way, the path was there only chance of finding a way out. A question ran through her mind. Did Miriam know they would end up here? Why do the Hanging Gardens even have an entrance to the Observatory? How did anyone get out or in this place? Whatever her curiosities were, she would perhaps get them answered later when the old hag inevitably calls on them for work. There ahead of them, built into the wall, was a small wooden door that appeared to be but a speck in their vision. Sally could just barely make out the frame of it, and she sincerely hoped the path would not lead them astray in this strange circle. The first step to the door produced a sound that echoed across the circle's walls, the tap of the sole against the stone. The acoustics were unnatural, which seemed to be the main selling point for the observatory.

"Sing? I haven't really sung much except for in my head, or back when I was a kid... Are you sure?" asked Aliyah, wanting to confirm. "Go ahead, knock yourself out, I wanna hear more about the Needle from what you know."

"Well... Alright then." responded the girl, her voice a bare whisper that still echoed and amplified through the circle. "Just please don't make fun of me, or insult me, or anything. Just listen."

"No promises."

Of course, Sally was joking, but Aliyah took that seriously and stomped her foot. The small crack grew into an ear-piercing boom that would echo through the city streets. Someone somewhere rolled over in their bed and covered their head with a pillow. Recovering from the ear-shattering explosion of sound, Sally brought the hands that had reflexively covered her ears down to her sides. A slight ringing noise seemed to be coming out of Aliyah's apologetic mouth, which was merely opening and closing at the moment. The half-elf was apologizing to Sally, but she doubted she could hear her. She snapped her fingers close to the bartender's ears, trying to see if she could react to them. Soon Sally jumped back a little as she heard the snaps to her left ear. Her standard human features, contrasting directly to Aliyah's, faced the girl like a weird mirror. "Alright. It's fine! I can hear now!" she had to say over the ringing which was tolerable now. Taking a deep breath, she let it out after two seconds and hummed. A constant and melodious buzz that would serve to set the tone for this lullaby.

O' the light, O' she shines

O'er the city so bright

O' the Shard, O' she sings

For the Stars Ev'rynight

O' it weeps in the day

O' it howls in the night