The caravan stood facing the archway on the extraction point, full of anticipation. The rest of the journey had been uneventful. The sky slowly started to darken, now a blue-gray. Zeirdin stifled a shiver as the wind eerily howled around the caravan. He could hear strange chattering noises over the wind if he strained his ears. It was as if the gray wasteland was starting to wake up, which wasn’t a good thing. Zeirdin yawned and shifted his weight from foot to foot, his feet ached from the day’s journey. He was no stranger to long days of travel from the months he traveled from Gistern to The Tower, but his backpack now weighed significantly more.

Everyone silently waited for the gate to power up, the gentle hum of the Magfreighters comforting in contrast to the hostile wasteland. The extraction gate was an artificial tear in reality to the next floor. No one truly knew the distance between each floor.

“Why can’t the freaking gate just open already, my toes hurt so much, dude,” Jin complained.

“Aaa, I agree.” Zeirdin groaned, unsuccessfully attempting to blink off his fatigue. He had not had a chance to get any of the now multiple pebbles out of his boots. The metal archway began to hum, almost sounding melancholy. Tiny purple lights began to flicker all over the jagged metal surface like stars. Finally, a four-note jingle played as the gate entered the final phase. This jingle was the favorite noise of every veteran tower climber alive. It was the noise of rest, escape, and safety. Zeirdin loved it already. Finally, there was a dim flicker and the inside of the archway no longer was backdropped by the gray wasteland. It was now a window to a massive metal canopy. There was no zappy noise, or bright colors, just a silent tear in reality. It was the most disconcerting feeling to Zeirdin, his mind knew that the gate was severely bending the rules of reality and that he should be able to see through the archway. There were some light cheers and groans among the two hundred people, but everyone was too fatigued to be more than relieved. First, every non-guild member was allowed through. The gate was just barely big enough to fit one Magfreighter through, but it would be quicker to let people on foot go first. People rumbled through the gate, clearly fatigued. Zeirdin waited at the back with Jin and nervously stepped through. There was no strange sensation or anything. It was in fact more strange that there wasn’t. There was no difference between walking through a doorway.

“Wow,” Jin whispered in awe. Spacial gates were practically fairy tales, and incredibly rare to come across outside the tower. Finding a working one was nearly impossible. The green metal canopy was 30 meters tall at the highest point, completely dwarfing the two hundred people below, like a second sky. The canopy was held up by four massive concrete pillars. The canopy was built on top of clay soil covered in green grass. Zeirdin eagerly inhaled the cool moist night air, hungry for more. It was an improvement over the air on the first floor that had been dusty and dry, devoid of all moisture. 50 meters from each edge of the canopy were massive concrete walls. A harsh contrast to the lush green grass that covered the ground of the enclosure. In the distance, directly in front of the extraction gate entrance was a ramp that lead to a gigantic concrete gate. Jin and Zeirdin began to follow the other people milling towards the gate.

Jin laced his hands on top of his head, “The gates let everything through. This is all a contingency measure against anything making it through.” Zeirdin silently nodded, too tired to want to bother replying. Zeirdin inwardly shuddered at the thought of anything making it through with them. That would be a bad day.

“Ugh, I just want to sleep,” Zeirdin complained. The distance to the gate was much further than it looked.

“Agreed, brother,” Jin replied. Through unspoken words, Jin and Zeirdin decided that they would stick together for a while. Zeirdin was thankful to have made a friend in The Tower. The sky of Floor 2 was a deep purple, another stark contrast to the monochromatic landscape of Floor 1. Each floor of The Tower shared the same timezone it seemed, at least so far. As the first person made it to the gate, a small doorway materialized as the slabs of concrete slid to the side. It allowed just enough room for one person to fit through, but nothing else. The big gate would have to be opened for the massive Magfreighters that would soon pass through. As they approached the gate, Zeirdin realized that once again he had severely misjudged the scale. It loomed over everything, casting an endless dark shadow. Zeirdin’s toes ached inside his boots, a few pebbles had buried themselves somewhere near his toes.

A man in a booth on the other side of the booth waved Jin and Zeirdin inside, “Welcome to Floor 2 and our city, Lestag.” The man sounded unenthusiastic looking like he wanted to go home. Zeirdin didn’t blame him. In front of them stretched the main road of Lestag. Lestag was already much cleaner looking than Splinter, with clean paved roads, walkways and newer buildings. Trees were planted in intervals on the dirt next to the road. In the distance loomed the city center with tall rectangular buildings, bright with little dots of yellow light. The city was built on a hill, the main road sloping up towards the city center. Lestag was easily three times as large as Splinter, Zeirdin didn’t even know how much more populated it was.

“I’ve heard Lestag was big, but I didn’t think it would be like an almost medium-size city in Falgonia,” Jin said.

Zeirdin nodded, “Yeah. Well, I was actually already surprised with Splinter being bigger than Vilya.” It felt nice to be in a civilized city. Splinter was a complete garbage heap in comparison. Zeirdin hoped outside the city of Floor 2 would be wooded like his homeland. Most shops were closed since it was after 9 Pm. They continued along the empty main road, looking for somewhere to sleep for the night. The street lamps added a picturesque orange glow to the night city, like fallen stars.

“Cities like these form in the tower every time a floor jumps a lot in difficulty. People are too scared to advance, and it’s usually too expensive for normal people to buy passage.” Jin said passively, almost reading Zeirdin’s mind.

“Makes sense.” Zeirdin nodded. Zeirdin desperately hoped they would find an inn. Eyelids like lead, Zeirdin persevered. His legs felt like soggy noodles and each step was a struggle to not lock his knees and fall over. Most of the two hundred people they had arrived with had dispersed into the city, but a few lingered on the main road.

Zeirdin and Jin parted ways in the hallway, off to their separate rooms. They both got rooms in the first inn they found, despite it being overpriced. This inn was much nicer than Joe’s House. With plaster and wood walls, and proper furnishings, it was much cozier than he had expected. Shrugging off his backpack, it fell to the ground with a thonk. The lack of weight pulling his shoulders down and restricting his breathing was pure bliss. Zeirdin immediately collapsed onto his bed like a dropped sack of potatoes. With much struggle, Zeirdin unlaced his boots while still lying down and kicked them off. His aching feet immediately thanked him as he sighed. Zeirdin rolled onto his side, only to get a face full of orange light from the street. Groaning, Zeirdin rolled off the bed and closed the rough burgundy curtains. Too tired to eat or put on anything more comfortable, Zeirdin collapsed onto his bed and burrowed under the covers. Immediately, he fell asleep, completely a log.

Zeirdin awoke, startled, to the sound of Jin banging on his door, “Breakfast! Let’s go sleepy ass!” Zeirdin groaned and rolled onto his side, covering his ear with a pillow. A clicking sound came from the door. “I got a key to your room from the receptionist,” Jin said, mischievously. Zeirdin jerked upright. There was no telling what Jin would do and he wasn’t about to find out.

“Ok gimme a minute,” Zeirdin mumbled groggily. Pulling on his leather jacket, Zeirdin slipped on his dusty boots, not bothering to lace them up. After relieving himself, Zeirdin went down to the dining hall with Jin. The warm breakfast was a welcome surprise, as he hadn’t had one in nearly months now. Jin and Zeirdin both had toasted rye bread with butter, smoked thin sliced mystery meat, and bone broth soup. While nothing fancy, it was warm and it reminded him of home. Though, he wasn’t sure how they got some of the ingredients. They were probably substituted.

“Aaaaah, this is good. Totally worth the six dynats a night.” Jin said with a satisfied expression, after clearing his plate. Zeirdin choked on his soup.

“WHAT? I can’t afford that!” Zeirdin almost yelled in alarm, after swallowing his soup. He had been too exhausted to pay attention to the price, the night before. After the passage through Floor 1, he had to be more frugal.

“Nah, I got you covered. I paid for seven nights for both of us.” Jin smiled proudly. Zeirdin sighed in relief.

“Holy shit, you’re loaded. Thanks, man.” Zeirdin said thankfully. Six dynats a night was too expensive for Zeirdin at the moment, as he had almost no savings, and no income until he left the safe zones.

“Today we should just look around and gear up. I can rent some gear for the both of us.”, Jin said. Zeirdin nodded. Buying new gear up front was quite expensive, and not affordable to most. Jin picked up his food tray, “I say we just look for old destroyed androids to loot. I’m not very good at fighting or magic. Plus it’s safer.”

“Yeah, I agree,” Zeirdin said. But a part of Zeirdin wanted to fight and get stronger, and eventually acquire zinnia. Ignoring it, he picked up his food tray and followed Jin.

After getting directions, Jin and Zeirdin arrived at the Cobalt Annulus. It was the hub of all things related to climbing The Tower. Gear, food, supplies, performance-enhancing drugs, massive tournaments for money, the Cobalt Annulus had it all. The entire city of Lestag was built around the Cobalt Annulus, which had started as a simple place to rest and sell goods found in The Tower. Zeirdin had severely underestimated the scale of the Cobalt Annulus. It got its name for the circular pathway and blue glass roof that spanned the outer ring, connecting all the shops and buildings to each other. The pathway was actually a multi-lane road with half of it dedicated to foot traffic, the other for motorized transport. In the center of the Annulus was a circular plaza with places to sit as well as a fight ring. The annulus was multi-floored, with Zeirdin counting nine from where they walked along the outside. No building was the same color, with pipes, wires, walkways, catwalks, bridges, and buildings built on top of one another, the entire complex was a patchwork of chaos. With winding paths that lead between blocks of buildings, it was easy to get lost.

Zeirdin told Jin about Crut and Gear7 so they decided to look for it. A hover scooter whirred past Zeirdin on his left. It was bizarre to see so many hover scooters. Outside The Tower, they were incredibly expensive due to the fact that none of the parts could be manufactured anymore. People hadn’t reverse-engineered hover technology yet. Everything that hovered was either related to magic or built from parts salvaged off of old war machines and androids. The biggest casualty of The Cataclysm was knowledge.

“Gear7? That’ll be in the gear department. Just keep following this road and look for the orange sign that says Gear7.” They thanked the man and continued on the busy main path. It was primarily foot traffic, but walking in the motor vehicle lanes could be dangerous. Zeirdin felt light and unburdened, the artificial sun warm against his neck. The weather was good, and it was nice not wearing a sixty-pound backpack all the time.

“How far do you think you’re going to get in The Tower?”, Jin asked, canvas bag slung over his shoulder as they walked. “I’m not sure myself yet, I might just leave once I trade a black zinnium core for an exit pass at floor 28.”

“I’m not leaving until I die or get strong enough to kill a Battle Saint,” Zeirdin said almost scowling, his red eyes smoldering. He knew he sounded ridiculous, but did not care. Jin cast him a sympathetic glance but knew not to poke. The news of the Vilya Massacre had only made it out of Gistern for a brief time before it had been shut down with bribes, favors, and violence. The fact that Jin knew about it went to show just how well connected his father was.

“Is that the right sign?” Zeirdin pointed to an orange sign in the distance, nestled against many other signs in a multicolored patchwork.

“Race you there!” Jin said as he got a head start, jumping into a sprint. There was no way Zeirdin would lose to a rich boy. Kicking the ground with all his might, Zeirdin quickly closed the gap with precise and smooth strides. “Dammit,” Jin swore. Snickering, Zeirdin made it to the sign first with Jin 10 meters behind him. The Sign read Gear7 with the G being a modified gear welded onto the orange painted sign.