The Silver Bullet exited the tunnel and slowed down, the lights inside the carriage dimming in intensity. Cora was already awake and was the first to spot the city of Edel: a forest of glass and steel rising up along the highland. A garden of iron guarded by two massive statues at the exact center of the urban agglomeration, both towering at least twice as high as the most impressive skyscraper.
Elidana turned around with a sleepy expression and her blonde lock fell onto her face. "Have we arrived?" she whispered as she adjusted her hair clip.
"Yes," Cora startled. Elidana's face was barely a hand span away from his, her breath tickling the skin on his neck. Too close, way too close. He widened his eyes, looking for an escape route. The window! He thought. He clung to it like a mollusk to a rock. He was safe from that embarrassing situation, but in the meantime, Elidana had pressed herself against the seat to avoid hitting her head.
"Sorry," he told her, trying not to collapse on her.
"It's okay, but now move," she said.
"Fez, Aran, hurry! Look over here," Cora finally said. Caught off guard, Fez slapped Aran with an open hand on his cheek. A full-fledged slap. Allet's eyes widened and only a moment later he squinted in his friend's direction. "Fez, do that again and I'll throw you off the train..." he snapped, "but when it's moving!"
However, Fez didn't seem to listen, captivated as he was by the view outside. Soon Aran followed his gaze and was left speechless. "It's immense!" he mumbled.
Four, five times larger than Clodia, it almost seemed to have no end. The starry sky of dawn paled in comparison to the lights of Edel. A panorama that could only be fully appreciated from that elevated position. The buildings were rigid stalagmites with pointed tips, each of different harmony. Entire neighborhoods welcomed symmetric artificial lakes surrounded by vegetation. There, with a slow and regular cadence, water splashed between the glares and took on the shape of orderly geometric patterns.
"That on the platform is the Upper Edel," Lucas said with a playful voice. He pointed to an indistinct spot below. The whole city was arranged on two distinct levels. Lowering her gaze below the bridge they were crossing, Cora saw many small houses crowded together. The streets were arranged without any apparent logic, and vehicles powered by Seorite roamed the roads, leaving their pale trails visible even in daylight. A rainbow of changing colors mingled in a festive display.
Lucas looked back at Marmorel with his baggage already on his shoulder. "It was a pleasure meeting you. Enjoy your stay and have a great Grand Prix." He smiled and bid everyone farewell. "Now I have to catch up with my comrades, or I'll get a reprimand," he concluded.
"Lucas, it was nice meeting you too, and I hope to see you again," Marmorel tweeted in an apologetic tone.
"Attention: we will soon be arriving at our destination. Passengers are kindly requested to collect their luggage and line up near the doors," the speaker crackled.
They all remained in the center of the corridor, as the train braked for short intervals and continued its journey on the connecting bridge to the station. The upper city was getting closer, and in the area they had just entered, there was a general order in the arrangement of the buildings. The train passed under a series of arches that illuminated the tracks, each of a different color, offering a hypnotic alternation of lights. "Welcome to Edel," said the loudspeaker.
When the train stopped, the doors opened with a silent snap. The station was crowded with people. Even though it was only the early hours of the morning, it seemed like there was no peace.
The five of them descended in an orderly way and stretched their sore muscles. Aran took a moment to study the dense sequence of luminous panels, full of directions.
"Let's go outside, my ears are about to explode..." Cora muttered impatiently. A monotonous buzz could be felt in the air. It was barely more than a background noise, but as soon as Cora realized it, she couldn't hear anything else. It was unbearable. He brought his hands to his ears and finally paid attention to Aran: he was pointing to the power tubes that snaked along the walls. "It's the Seorite! With all the active Cec systems, there should be an incredible noise. They must have something to isolate the sound," he said.
"But it's already damn annoying!" exclaimed Cora, observing the citizens who were now accustomed to the noise with disappointment.
They quickly left the station; there, an extensive parking lot opened up with a sea of vehicles for passenger transport. A swarm of vultures ready to grab a ride.
"Tourists? Please... please... this way," began a stocky man with a blue hat printed with the Kharzanian emblem. He treated them like a precious treasure to be hidden, and nearly forced them into the old purple-colored vehicle nearby. A couple of his colleagues were already behind Fez. "They're with me!" he growled, almost ripping it out of their hands.
"Where do you want to go? Do you want to take a panoramic tour of the city, or should I just take you to your destination?" he asked in one breath.
Marmorel broke free from the driver's grip and stumbled over Fez's bag. "Wait a moment...what's up with you and manners? Calm down!" she shouted at the man.
The driver maintained a formal smile, straightened his jacket, and picked up the luggage. "I'm sorry, I'll take care of it," he continued.
After filling up the rooftop carrier, the teenagers squeezed into the narrow vehicle.
"You can call me Mansell, and it's an honor to guide you through the city streets. That'll be fifty shields," he said, exhaling all the air from his lungs and relaxing into his seat.
Aran, seated in the front, had just pulled out the piggy bank when Mansell swiped over the terminal and credited the agreed-upon amount to his account.
"Do you already have a destination? Lodging? Friends? Shall we drive around Edel aimlessly?" he pressed. He adjusted the rearview mirror and rubbed his hands together.
"Take us somewhere we can leave our luggage and sleep for the night, away from here, please," said Cora, who was sandwiched between Fez and Marmorel and unable to move as he pleased. The cabin smelled of old and some of the finishes were rusted. He felt like a sardine in a can, the kind with a pungent odor that he used to open with Aran in the Allet kitchens when his mother wasn't home.
"Alright, I know a nice place near the Garden of the Senses." The vehicle started up, and the doors closed without anyone touching them. Mansell took a route where the signs instructed that only Cec-powered vehicles were allowed to circulate. A connection that surrounded Edel in an embrace and passed by the upper floors of the skyscrapers.
"What is the Garden of the Senses?" asked Marmorel, holding her nose.
"The Garden of the Senses is where you go to recharge after a week of work. With Cecs scattered throughout Edel, the city's noises become difficult to tolerate over time."
"I would go crazy in these conditions too," Cora emphasized.
"After a while, you get used to it, but a break every once in a while doesn't hurt. It's the price we pay for the high standard of living our wonderful government provides us with," said Mansell.
Mansell swerved to the side and the vehicle suddenly accelerated, overtook another vehicle, and returned to the lane. Once they resumed their normal speed, Cora realized he had dug his nails into Fez's leg, but he didn't seem to have noticed, as he was tightly gripping the door handle.
They overpast a building that was taller than the others, with a spiral shape that ended in a point piercing the sky. It was surrounded by three other buildings of the same shape, but smaller in size.
Elidana pressed her face against the window. In front of her were the giant statues she had seen from the train. "And those?" she asked. One of them depicted a bearded warrior dressed in animal skins, wielding a chipped and pointed stone sword. The other impressive work was a man with round glasses, wearing a double-breasted suit. In his open palm, he held a round stone.
"The statue on the right represents Emil Croden: the genius who discovered how to use Seorite and gave us these years of glory," Mansell explained, pointing to the figure with glasses.
"The inventor of the Cec systems," Elidana nodded weakly.
"But isn't it too... how can I say... big?" Cora added.
"Well, it certainly deserves a place of honor. The nation owes him everything," Mansell replied.
"But who's the other one? He looks like a homeless person," Aran asked with a curious voice.
"Watch your mouth, boy! That's Orghein and he's not homeless. He's the real First Shield. The hero who four hundred years ago gathered all the tribes from the Sea of Fools to the border with the Zalesia desert, shaping the Kharzan as it is now," Mansell replied with fervor and Aran shrugged. "Sorry... I didn't know."
"Mr. Mansell, can you tell me where the Grand Prix circuit is?" Fez asked.
"It's not far from here." Mansell returned to his complacent tone. "Well well, so you're in town for the race? Root for Vernon Zalan of the Rampant Unicorns, I recommend it." He hit the yellow unicorn that was dangling from the mirror with his hand. "He's a guy who deserves it, he's worked hard to get where he is now."
Marmorel, who had been playing with small buttons and levers the whole time, slammed the car window down, allowing a gust of wind to give the car fresh air.
"Mmm... From what I've read, Laratt is the best Vassp driver in the last twenty years," Fez countered.
Mansell frowned in disapproval. "Well, newspapers can write what they want. But Vernon is the most skilled and fast. This year he has proven his value by setting the best lap times in the practice." He looked back at the road. "Winning a Grand Prix changes your life." He turned right.
"Hey! Slow down!" Cora yelled, pale in the face.
The vehicle veered off the main road and took a sharp turn into the city path. They saw a huge glass dome supported by a metal frame. It housed a lush lawn filled with trees and plants of many colors, in contrast to the artificial and gray surroundings of the neighborhood. Cora saw children playing while many elders talked on comfortable benches.
"We're almost there. That is next to the Garden of the Senses that I told you about. Your hotel is in those buildings," Mansell said, pointing to their destination. He followed the road that surrounded the block and stopped in front of a three-story building. "If you want to take a tour of the city or just move around, you can call me with this."
He gave Aran a business card with his name and vehicle number: a red box was printed in the bottom right corner.
"Just swipe your finger over the red square multiple times until it changes color, and I can reach you in a few minutes."
The door opened, and Cora and Fez jumped out. "Finally... finally, I need air!" Marmorel exclaimed, straightening her dress.
"Let's rest, and later we'll take a tour of the city," Aran suggested, looking around.
"Don't forget to contact me, I'm available 24/7, anywhere in Edel." Mansell drove away at high speed. Cora took advantage of the moment to catch his breath and held his stomach with both hands. "Do we really have to go back in that deathtrap?" he asked. Aran and Elidana looked at him sympathetically. "Well, we don't have many options," she said.