Broken

Chapter 24 (Yejun)

As it turned out, entering the tower was a fairly simple affair. Yejun had read about it, of course; not to mention their professors had also explained it all to them. It wasn't like the makers of the towers cared to make it difficult to enter, as the more people to make it in, the greater the Higher Powers could be amused. The restriction on entry were set in place by the government themselves, and the limitations varied by nation.

So it shouldn't be too much of a surprise that all they had to do was set their hands upon a tall, dark stone set into an ornate archway carved into the side of the tower. One second Yejun was wedged between Wendy and Benny, and the next he was magically under the night sky.

Mouth agape, the small group backed away from the two foot crystal, making way for the next group to come through.

Yejun could not help but stare at the new world that now surrounded him. He had read about the discovered floors of Titanfall, he knew what to suspect on this first floor... but, even so, he couldn't help but be in awe.

The first floor of the Titanfall tower was a vast, unending, desert of obsidian black sand. The dunes of this black ocean of sand stretched far off to the horizon, the distance impossible to measure. The sky was that dark bluish color of a summer twilight, the stars so bright that he almost didn't even notice that there was no moon.

It was beautiful and awe inspiring. Yet, at the same time there was this sense of oppressiveness that reminded Yejun of when Aoife had brought him to the aquarium once and they had gone into this glass tunnel that went through a massive fish tank. Just the thought of all that water over his head, held back by nothing but glass... it was heavy and anxiety inducing.

"This is nuts..." Breathed Raj. 

Yejun nearly jumped. He had been so engrossed on the vista before him that he hadn't even noticed that the others had already entered the tower. Looking over his shoulders, he could see that he wasn't the only one gawking. Even the several of the second year students stood, captivated, buy the haunting beauty of the first floor's desert.

"It feels weird here." Wendy stated, rubbing her arms nervously.

Yejun understood what she meant. This desert was neither hot nor cold, there was zero wind, and, other than the sounds he and the others were making, it was dead silent. In fact, many raiders simply referred to the first floor as the Dead Desert or the Black Desert.

"Alright scrubs!" Monica snapped loudly. Yejun actually felt a thrill of fear at her loud words, instinctively thinking her volume would draw in predators. "Listen up, and listen good. As you know, the Dead Desert is typically easy to get through. We just need to go from here and follow the carefully marked path to the second floor entrance crystal. There are none of the typical monster mobs or hazards as one would typically find in either instances or other tower floors."

Another instructor nodded, his name was Orvil, and he was a mage. Yejun hadn't had any interaction with the man before, but he had seen him around campus a lot, talking animatedly with other teachers and students. To be honest, Yejun had never seen another mage so personable, himself included.

"That isn't to say there are no dangers at all." Orvil continued where Monica had stopped. He smiled at the nervous group, giving off the impression that being in the tower was nothing more than a milk run for him. Yejun wasn't sure if he should feel comforted that this established magician was so confident, or fearful that he was taking all this so lightly. "Dead Desert can be both the safest floor, and potentially the most dangerous."

"You mean the sand monsters, right?" Yejun heard another student ask.

Orvil nodded. "Yes. Though, as you know, it may be more accurate to call them golems rather than monsters. They are made of the black sands and do not appear to have self consciousness. Our only goal is to get from point A-" He directed a pale finger to the sand beneath his feet. "- To point B." This time his arm stretched out into the distance.