The Revelation of the Vine: Graft

Chapter 13: Grasping the Heels of the Sky

  There was another sudden vibration across the floor again, and the platform appeared to move. It slowly lifted a brief distance, and a sharp hiss blew behind us. The platform then jerked forward, and we began to hover, slowly drifting through the city. As we traveled, passing by rows and rows of the buildings, intersections and flying vehicles, we watched swarms of humans fade in and out of view in their mostly white, blue and grey attire. The soothing voice narrated, "The Year is 1 B.B.; one year before the Breach. This sprawling metropolis was considered the bastion of human advancement and progress, and it covered the entire eastern continent. "It was known as the United Districts of Atmos, and was separated into many various districts across the land. It stretched from the northern hemisphere to the southern and from the eastern shore to the western. There were many layers of this great city, stacked upon the countless structures that rose from its surface. The total estimated population before the Breach was 24.6 billion. Currently, we are in the top layer of the Capital District called Upper Stratos, or simply, the Penthouse. Resting at a height of 10 miles above sea level, this layer was essential to the function of Atmospheric Engineering, which allowed us to live in the heights of the heavens with ease. It was also home to the world s most influential, respected, and wealthy citizens and leaders. The estimated population for this level was only 600 million. "Boooo," a jeering cry rose from the Seeds, and some of the Knights. "I hate that part," Zahk grumbled. The platform began to veer to the side, cutting alongside a long building toward an opening in the floor. It was designated with black lines around its border. Trees and shrubs were placed around 3 of the edges as an enclosure. The platform descended along the slope and passed through a fast-moving, high-altitude cumulus cloud in the next level. This layer was much different than the first. There were many more vehicles flying around and people wandering about. It was at least a mile to the floor, with enormous buildings towering from the floor to the ceiling. The platform veered down into a line of high-flying traffic that passed between the buildings. "This was the market layer," The voice explained, "Called Middle Stratos, or simply the Hub by the many and diverse inhabitants of the great city. Its floor once towered above the planet at 9 miles above the surface. It was strategically designed to separate the Penthouse from the Residential layers below, so that interaction between the two upper classes would rarely occur. From here, humans could board Grav-Trains that connect the different districts of the continental city -- utilizing sky-breaking technology from Thunderclap Industries that manipulated gravitation and employed electromagnetic force. "There were also many shops, vendors, entertainment venues, businesses, and factories here. And, although there were no official residential areas registered in this layer, estimated population was around 500 million people consisting of slaves and refugees." The platform dipped under a line of traffic toward the lower levels, weaving around floating platforms and trees, small shops, and hovering aisle-stalls. The lower half of this layer seemed a little darker and dirtier than the one above. Glowing signs of neon light rose along the walls of different buildings, as countless people entered and exited through many doors, openings and arches. Moving images flashed across large screens hovering in the air. One of them showed an elderly man trying to bite an apple, but to no avail. He smiled, revealing a gaping toothless hole. "It's Ol' Snappy," Tenbu said, using the name he and the other Seeds had designated to the caravan driver. A short laugh rose from his friends. In the next scene, the man grabbed a small, silver cylinder from the counter and opened it, guzzling the whole container in one breath. A few moments passed, as he looked anxiously at it, reading the descriptions that circled around it. Suddenly, his cheeks began to tent like they were being poked and prodded from the inside. A few more moments passed and his skin defaulted back to its normal state. When he smiled the next time, a brand new set of perfectly-white, shiny teeth filled his mouth. He bit happily into the apple with juices running down his cheeks and dripping from his chin. A fiery star streaked across the screen, followed by the words Enamo-Nano, It s a mouthful. The platform swerved down under an open arch, and headed toward another opening in the clear floor. We descended through a thicker layer of clouds this time where faint rumbles of thunder echoed in the distance. Once we reached open visibility, the vastness of this level quickly became apparent. It was filled with levels and levels of the flat protruding platforms and domed rings. Large square sections of housing areas and neighborhoods were also visible, lining the spaces between structures on the floor below like patchwork and stretching beyond the horizon in all directions. "We are now entering Lower Stratos," The voice chimed in, "also called the Burg. This lower level was entirely residential, and is home to the city s middle- and lower upper-class citizenry. Resting at 7.5 miles above the surface it was also the level where the upper portions of the planet's cumulonimbus rainclouds were occasionally formed. Estimated population at this time was 6.5 billion." "That still leaves 17 billion people," Tenbu said, raising an eyebrow. "I guess they don't get to live up here," Teion said, crinkling his nose in disgust. "It gets worse," Korsin said, as he crossed his arms. As the platform descended toward the floor, the interiors of some of the rings became distinguishable. Some were filled with children, others with teens, and several more with young to middle-aged adults. There were also rings that were filled with parks, forests, and pools while others contained man-made lakes, ponds and beaches. The flat protrusions turned out to be docking platforms to large residential communities where flying vehicles stopped to let on or off a group of passengers. The platform passed through some lines of traffic and groups of neighborhoods. There were many more trees, shrubbery and yards of grass blanketing the floor of this layer. We veered behind a large building with a red cross, and passed through a small park on the bottom floor before dropping toward an opening situated a short distance away from a large water tower. We slowed to a stop, gently hovering above the metal doors, when the voice made another entrance, "These doors lead down to Upper Tropos, or the Greenhouse. This layer was reserved for engineering, manipulating, and managing the continental city's weather patterns." A soft hiss released pressure, and the doors began to lift up from the ground, and then swing out on curved hinges, stopping at a 90 degree angle above the floor. There was darkness below, swirling black and dark-grey. Lightning brightened the inside of the massive storm-cloud, followed by booms and rolls of thunder, as the platform began to descend into the flashing darkness.