[Book II Chapter 17] FILIA: The Twin Cities

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… How unpleasant.>> Happy said.

Filia rolled her eyes. Her spectral sukemon shared the famously foul outlook of other duskulls. She’d chosen his name in hopes it might improve his disposition. It hadn’t worked. Although she’d finally earned his grudging respect, he still regarded the rest of humanity with contempt.

He’s right though. I have never seen so many in the city. Filia observed the crowded streets as she and Zentrias jumped across rooftops. Must be the migration to safety. She glanced up at the gigantic peach-colored wall looming on the horizon. Far past those ramparts lay the crater where the world-fracturing spell had been unleashed. Everything on the other side once belonged to the undead.

North-east of Aery, Nordric was the capital of Arland. Most of the country had been overrun by Sola’s hordes. The distant fortifications were the work of its ruler, Samuel Horn. As one of the great earth-affinity ‘builder’ immortals, he’d crafted much of humanity’s defenses at the time.

They entered Nordric’s adventurer guild, skipping across peach-tinged buildings. More of Samuel’s work. As the region’s largest surviving branch, this place had become the staging ground for exploring the vast Twisted Lands around Ground Zero. It was always abuzz with activity, but more so today.

> Happy demanded.

Filia observed the adventurers below, seeing quite a few with gray hair. “Many are coming out of retirement.” Filia answered without thinking.

“That’s the Dark Age’s upside.” Zentrias agreed. “Earning exp is easier. It’s especially attractive for those ‘riskless’ saints.”

It was possible to reach the rank of saint while avoiding real danger. Many nobles pursed this path, slowly racking up accomplishments in coliseums and tamer dungeon. However sainthood is where this ends. Barring a few exceptions, immortality required multiple-near death experiences. The HEAVENLY DAO didn’t recognize cowards. Only one out of eight makes it to the Wall of Legends, so most chose to retire… Until now.

The calculus had changed. In addition to the increased exp, there was also the desperate need for strength to defend against the coming perils. Hence the elderly adventurers.

When arriving in Nordric, Zentrias had received a message that Sir Julius wanted to see him immediately. We’re either in trouble or there’s a job for us. Filia was tagging along out of curiosity and to pick up some sukemon treats.

They made their way to the top of the main building, and a secretary waived them in to a wide office. A grizzled scarred man sat behind a large oak desk. He looked up and grumbled, “Finally…” They were invited to install themselves at the nearby table.

Julius Edgar was an immortal, a veteran from before the last Dark Age. Technically the vice-guildmaster, his superior was so frequently absent he pretty much ran the place. He appeared more overworked than usual.

“You took your sweet time getting back.” Julius complained, walking over.

Zentrias remained composed. “You could have contacted us if it was urgent.”

“I didn’t realize how in demand airships would become. Besides, I knew you’d be in a dungeon so I didn’t bother. Anyway, it doesn’t matter now.”

He slammed down two quest stones and slid them over. Zentrias carefully picked one up:

QUEST: Deal with the disappearances in the Evermist

STATUS: Uncompleted

GUILD ESTIMATED DIFFICULTY: A-S

ACTUAL DIFFICULTY: —

“The slums outside Neon and two Evermist settlements have reported unexplained disappearances. As always, many are children.” Julius explained. “Find and end whatever is causing this.”

I expected as much. Their party had Carol, a fearmancer intimately familiar with the Moonlit Lands. When that place’s denizens crossed over, they were the first choice to hunt them down.

Zentrias nodded, “We’ll accept.” He reached for the second stone.

QUEST: Investigate the Undermist

STATUS: Uncompleted

GUILD ESTIMATED DIFFICULTY: S

ACTUAL DIFFICULTY: —

> Happy crowed. Filia and Zentrias were less amused.

“Confirm there are no abnormalities.” Julius instructed. “This is an age where everything is slated to go wrong. That place is too deeply connected to the Moonlit Lands. If a breach has opened, I need to know.”

A silence fell over the room, compelling him to continued, “Your party, Aspire, is uniquely qualified for the job. I know Carol doesn’t like traveling down there——”

“It’s alright.” Zentrias interrupted. “We’ll accept this too.”

Filia raised an eyebrow, but kept quiet.

“Thank you,” Julius sat and leaned back, “That’s one weight off my shoulders.”

“What challenges are you currently facing?” Filia asked. This was a much needed chance to catch up on current events.

“Those bloody rifts are number one.” Julius began. “Tethered realms are vanishing, and a lot of them are in the nearby Twisted Lands. We’ve got an entire room dedicated to mapping out the situation. This weirdness with passageways to the Ether is what has me worried about the Undermist.”

“Then there is the Grey Kingdom’s subterranean offensive. Soon they’ll reach the old powers, the territories Sola never conquered, and we’ll see real war the likes hasn’t been seen in centuries. Adventurer’s will get drawn in, and we’ll have have an ungodly mess on our hands on our hands.”

Julius sighed and shook his head. He then motioned the window behind them. “Lastly there’s Aery.”

Thirty miles out, an enourmous block of land floated above them. This was Novgard, the lowest of Aery’s floating island. It was home to a city of the same name which housed the gateway to Bastion.

“Lord Oliver Brack refuses to relax Aery’s immigration policies, insisting airships be docked one at a time so refugees can be escorted to the gateway. We’re barely getting ten thousand through a day…”

“Surely someone can get them to see reason.” Zentrias leaned forwards, somewhat agitated. “There are millions that need to be moved. It’ll be a disaster otherwise.”

Julius gave a sad shrug, “Novgard has long overseen new arrivals, and queen Kalista is content to leave this matter in Oliver’s hands. I was never an expert on the inner workings of Aery’s politics, but I hear she and Astra have a strained relationship. Since evacuation are primarily an Adventurer Guild endeavor, I don’t see the matter improving anytime soon.”

“In fact,” Julius added. “Their response so far has been to provide funds for the construction of housing outside Neon. The slums down there are about to grow bigger.”

They left with Zentrias in a dour mood. He wasn’t the only one. <>

Filia smirked. Happy’s childish ranting didn’t bother her. Rather, it was why she’d chose him. She’d realized both her teammates and her sukemon had been babying her these past few weeks. They were undoubtedly afraid she might brake down because of what happened, and she was tired of it. Happy’s pessimism and open hostility was a refreshing change of pace.

A habit formed from adventuring, Filia was always fused with one of her sukemon. She’d learned to minimized her transformation during downtime. Right now, apart from a few bony protrusion and a grayish skin tone, she was mostly human.

“Carol is not going to be pleased she wasn’t consulted.” Filia ventured.

“Agreed.” Zentrias sighed. “I need to visit Edelweiss and speak with her. Can you drop me off?”

While he could cling to surfaces and slow falls, Zentrias was one of the few saints who couldn’t fly or glide. Destruction wasn’t versatile that way, and the beasts he could summon weren’t amicable to giving lifts.

“Sure, just let me grab my stuff.” Filia skipped away to pick up the exotic delicacies her sukemon loved to munch on.

Happy took the opportunity to voice his objections. <>

Filia ignored the duskull. If he had his way, I’d have no human interactions. She was quite happy with her current party.

Frowning, she remembering how her last one had ended. A man name Joel had professed his love to her, a particularly ill-fated confession. She’d been carrying their party recently and had already resolved to search for new partners on her skill level. Meanwhile, Joel had been close to retiring, recognizing his limits. While she’d been fond of the man, it wasn’t to the extent of sacrificing her chance at immortality. Joel understood all this, yet he’d felt compelled speak up anyway. It’d led to an awkward separation.

There’s no risk of that happening with Zentrias. It’d taken Filia an embarrassingly long time to figure out Aspire’s leader. He’d shown so little interest in the opposite sex she’d begun to doubt his orientation. Finally, she’d caught him gazing at Nordric’s guildmaster and realized the truth: he only had eyes for one woman. The most hopeless of unrequited loves.

Zentrias’s one minded drive had suddenly made sense. He was pursuing a legend millennia his elder, a beauty admired and sought after by all. He needed immortality to have the confidence to approach her. He wouldn’t dare until then.

I’m not sure it’s healthy. For decades, his life had revolved around this one-sided affection. So deep was his love that no other woman was worthy of consideration. What happens once he reached the Wall of Legends? What if she shuns him?

Zentrias was waiting outside in a courtyard with a round chasm at its center. Spotting her, he jumped over the railing, and she followed. They fell through the downward tunnel, glowing blue stones illuminated the interior every hundred feet. These passed by faster and faster as they picked up speed, and the bright light below grew in size. Filia fully merged with Happy, her skin turning darker and bony wings sprouting from back. She caught up and grabbed Zentrias’s hands as they exited the earth.

They soared above a landscape covered in highrises. Neon, the metal city. When Samuel Horn had claimed this land, he’d resolved to construct a metropolis. The earliest buildings were modest in size, only a few thousand feet. However, as Neon became a economic juggernaut, more and more cooperate headquarters were erected, and heights became excessive. Now five towers stretched three miles from the ground to the cavern ceiling, continuing through the bedrock and finishing in Nordric. The adventurer guild was atop one, and the hole they’d descended was constructed at the time.

Vast metallic scaffolding stood along the side where the earth dropped off. As commerce boomed, the cliffs facing Aery had been deemed insufficient, and Neon’s docks were extended upwards. For airships, the twin cities were one destination where visitors either took elevators up or down.

Since joining Aspire, Neon had been Filia’s home base. She had pen house suite with great areal access, although she used it infrequently. On the whole, she had mixed feelings about the city.

Neon was different from anywhere else. Money was king. You could find anything you wished for assuming you could pay the price. Sofix, the company behind sukemon, had its headquarters in one of the five towers, and all kinds of events were organized, which she appreciated. At the same time, there was a certain stifling rigidity. The scale of activity was so prodigious that the impact of any individual was imperceptible. This was a place of rules enforced by faceless organizations. Even immortals didn’t dare act out of hand in front of the well-equipped security forces.

Filia flew north-west of the city where the ground dipped lower. The buildings here were shorter, and they became more rundown the further one went. Eventually they morphed into barely assembled structures packed on top of each other. This continued for miles until the edges disappeared into a dense fog.

Deep in this ocean of poverty was an island of green. On an elevated bit of land, acres of gardens spread out. This was Edelweiss, the orphanage founded by Yuria, the absentee guildmaster Julius reported to. It’s where she gathered the children she found on her travels. Both Zentrias and Carol were alumni, so Filia visited frequented.

They spotted their teammate outside an old manor surrounded by a group of children. “Could you entertain them while I speak with Carol?” Zentrias asked.

“Sure.” Filia answered. Landing, she immediately summoned her Snorlots, Sammy, and her Slushpup, Rex. Sammy, a cross between a fluffy cat and lazy bear, was like a living plush toy. The young ones loved to climb all over her. As for Rex, the aquatic canine was more than happy to perform trick for treats. The crowd around Carol rushed over.

While babysitting, Filia focused her senses on her comrades. As anticipated, Carol was not amused.

“How could you accept the second one?” She demanded.

Zentrias pointed to where the subterranean cavern ended in a wall of white. “If a threat rises from the Undermist, the orphanage will be at risks. It’s a dark age. We have to check.”

Carol grimaced. “That place is too closely connected to Moonlit Lands. Monsters far worse than anything I’ve contracted are just dying to crossover, and I’m like a beacon when I travel there. We might create the threat we are tasked with finding.”

“True, but that sensitivity works both ways.” Zentrias countered. “There is no one better than you to detect if a rift has opened.”

Filia lost interest as it became evident Zentrias has succeeded in his persuasion. Instead, she glanced towards the distance fog. I wonder what nightmares we’ll be facing this time.