For a region full of snow, rocks, and mountainous pathways, Udra really captivated Elira’s heart in a way that none of the other regions in Zenith could. She’d travelled far and wide throughout all of Zenith, but never before had she come across views that constantly amazed her like this one.

The city of Rupes.

Its stench of stale oil was but one of its charms.

Regardless of how the city smelled, it was the way into and out of any of the cities across Mount Udra... unless one flew, of course. The region of Udra as a whole consisted of the mountain, with all of its rocky and snowy zones, and the grasslands, fields, and small forests at the bottom of the mountain. Rupes was the city that brought them all together. It was the cliffside of Udra, where mechanical lifts and contraptions were used to bring people to and from each area both up and down the mountain. The Tinkerer designed the lifts himself, Elira recalled.

A large part of the city was underground, below the mountain’s face. That was the area known for being an underbelly to Rupes’ beautiful topside that existed on the mountain face.

To get down to Acies, the path they had to follow was a simple one. Elira had mentally mapped out the way through Rupes’ lift network. That would get them down the quickes.

“Ugh! Why can’t we just fly there in our divine forms?” Gulmory impatiently asked.

“You know why, Gulmory... If the Warden chooses not to show himself to his people, electing for a personal convenience over them, then what kind of image do you think that sends across?”

Gulmory squinted her eyes at Elira. She was clearly annoyed, but had no way to refute Elira’s words.

“Elly’s right, Gulmory. I have to show my face, if only to sate our clan members and citizens’ worries.”

“... Very well.”

Elira guided Gulmory and Zivot through the narrow and winding pathways on Rupes’ top layer. This was the layer with the most affluent population. Much like in Draconis, Rupes had a big problem with its spread of wealth. Many of the rich folk had taken up spaces in the main parts of the city, while the poor lived in the Undercity.

The roads in the city were relatively flat, but they had to wind around a lot in order to avoid a straight and steep line that horses couldn’t track. This meant that the path to the first lift was very tight, and only just wide enough for a horse to fit through.

Elira brushed back Tempest’s furry mane.

“Hold on strong, Tempest. We’ll have you galloping in no time.”

*Bbrrrrpphhh*

“Talking to your horse now, Sage? You going senile in your old age?”

“You wouldn’t know anything about functioning and healthy relationships, would you, Emerald Witch? Last I remember, you estranged your own brother for... what was it? Please, do tell, what was so important that you had to cut ties with your blood relative?”

Gulmory scoffed. She refused to answer. Every time Gulmory tried to get under Elira’s skin, she’d only return the gesture twice as hard.

“Right, I thought not. Keep your lips sealed while we travel please, as I could do with less of my airspace being shared with you.” Elira said, rather coldly.

Zivot stifled a laugh, prompting Gulmory to ignore the both of them.

After a little while of travelling through the city and taking in the views, the three of them came across the first lift.

Which had a crowd gathering around it, for some reason.

Elira looked at the other two, who shrugged. She nudged Tempest forward to get closer to the group.

They were all mumbling together about something, with some of the people looking concerned about what was going on.

“Hello, might I ask what’s happened here?” Elira asked at the group in general, not aiming her words at anyone in particular.

More than a few of the people in the group ignored her, but some actually turned around.

Only a couple of them, however, deigned to answer.

“Lift’s broke. We ain’t got a path down ‘less we went thru’ the Undercity, but none’a us wanna go that way so we’re waitin’ for it t’be fixed.”

“Oh... do you know how long it’ll be until the lift gets fixed?”

“Not too long now, they said it might be a few hours, but that was ‘bout an hour ago. So I’m reckonin’ it’ll be done by supper.”

“Ah, right, thank you.”

The man returned to the group.

Elira thought about it for a second.

If it’s just the afternoon now, and we were planning to travel throughout the night to get to Acies for tomorrow evening... then this would set us back... by a long while. A whole day, as we’d have to stay the night at Acies, which I DO NOT want to do with these two numpties...

Right... time to make a choice.

“What’s wrong Elly?” Zivot asked.

He’d trod along on his horse who’d parked idle beside Elira.

“Well... the lift’s out of action for the next few hours, it seems. So we’ll have to go around the hard way!”

Gulmory’s eyes widened.

“Down there? The Undercity? Are you nuts?! They probably hate us more than anyone else in the entire Udra region! For a Sage, you’ve offered us a really stupid option here!”

“Okay we get it, you’re second-in-command and somehow less brave than your subordinate, but that’s fine snowflake. We can just sit here, waiting for the lift. Together. For hours. Just us. Oh, and we’ll stay the night together at Acies, how about that? I’ll be sure to share my room with you! I bet that’d go swimmingly!”

Gulmory stared at Elira.

She elected not to open her mouth again, but she did something that signalled Elira’s verbal victory.

Gulmory started moving, following the signs to the Undercity.

“... You’re sure this will keep us on schedule?” She asked while gritting her teeth.

Elira smiled to herself.

“Yes, I’m sure. It’ll probably be a bit quicker overall, since there’s no lifts in the Undercity. It’s just a long curvy track of pathways for the horses to zoom through. Once we’re at the bottom, we’ll exit the city from its main exit, which is the quickest way to Acies. We’ll travel through the night without rest, and hopefully arrive at Acies tomorrow by evening time.”

“You’ve... really thought this out, haven’t you, Sage?”

“Who else would’ve done so? Not you, that’s for sure. Alright, let’s get going. I don’t want to get to Aurum so late that we can’t find a place to stay.”

“Elly... you said that you knew a place... you’re sure we’ll be able to stay there?”

“Well... it’s a possibility. But that’s all it is... A possibility.”

“Very well, we’ll take whatever chances we can get. None of our nobles are in the city, so use whatever links you have, or we’ll have to stay in a hotel.”

“Alright.” Elira said, as they passed through the entrance to the Undercity.

Houses made almost entirely from metal, which looked like prison boxes, lined the streets all the way down to the bottom. The roads were much steeper here than they were above-ground. Cold water dripped from stalactites that jutted out from the cavernous ceiling.

“Whew... Well... now that we’re here...” Elira muttered. She looked at the other two.

“How about a race?” She asked.

“A race?” Gulmory looked confused, as if she’d never heard of the word before.

“Yeah, all three of us have our personal horses here. It’s a network of pathways that will eventually take us all to the bottom of the mountain, so why don’t we race our way there?”

Gulmory looked at Zivot, who had a smile on his face. She knew that he’d agree to the race. If Gulmory didn’t agree to it then she’d definitely end up as the laughing stock of the group for having no balls. That, and for showing that she was a lesser to Elira.

“Well? You in?”

“Aye. Just like old times! Don’t expect me to go easy on you just because it’s been so long!” Zivot said.

“You... you’ve both raced here before?!”

Elira tilted her head at Gulmory. She wore a smug ‘I thought you were better than this’ look.

“You haven’t?” Elira asked. “You’re telling me that you, who’s travelled all over Zenith twice over, never once thought to race horses through a city?”

“Well... I’ve travelled all over Zenith, minus the Empty, yes.”

“Not. The. Point.”

“Oh... right... w-well... FINE! I’m in! I’ll smoke you both, and you’ll see who the b-better horse-handler is!”

“H-... handler?... PFFT. BAHAHAHA! It’s RIDER! Have you actually ever ridden a horse before?”

“That’s enough now Elly. Leave the poor girl be.”

Gulmory looked like she was holding herself back from throwing hands.

“Pfft... Fine fine. Well, let’s get to a good starting point and I’ll count us in. The last one down to the bottom will have to do something for the other two. What that is, we can decide once the loser’s been named and shamed.”

“I like that. What say you, Gulmory?”

“... Fine by me.”

“Great! Let’s get into the Undercity and find a spot to start then.”

Elira guided the two of them into the Undercity. The entrance was surprisingly large, considering that it was connected to where the first lift was set to go down. A big archway of mossy stone connected the lands above with the Undercity, which resided below ground.

For all of her boasting and showing off, Gulmory was a lot more disappointing than Elira had expected. In the years she’d been working with the Warden, she’d never properly interacted with his right hand for an extended period of time, just because they’d often work in different fields.

But now that she’d gotten a proper look at Gulmory, Elira wasn’t all that impressed.

She lacks the mental fortitude it takes to work in this field... but maybe she’s got the skills. Let’s see how she fares here...

“You two ready?” Elira asked.

They both looked over at her and nodded.

The path in front of them started off wide, but it diverged off into numerous pathways that led to different areas within the Undercity. That was just how this place was designed.

Elira had an idea about the path that she’d take, and Zivot also had his own ideas.

“Right then... 3... 2... 1... GO!”

Tempest accelerated off the ground faster than the other two horses, as if he was waiting for this the whole time.

If she could keep this pace up, Elira had this race in the bag.