Ageless

Chapter 23

We were outside.

I could tell before opening my eyes. A sea breeze, cold and briny, tugged and loosened the braids of my hair, painstakingly arranged by Mia an hour earlier. Slowly, my vision adjusted to the aggressive brightness, a sharp contrast to the dark elevator shaft.

The entire eighty-fifth floor was one giant open-air disc the color of charcoal, made completely of stone. Giant pillars rose up around the perimeter, as thick in diameter as red-wood trees, together holding up the giant roof of the palace's great spire. Many of the columns were inlaid with small wooden doorways leading down to additional lift gates. Small processions of people funneled out of each entrance.

The stone pillars held up a hollow, vaulted roof like a monochrome circus tent. There were catwalks and ladders lining the network of rafters, giving the entire design an unfinished, still-in-construction feel.

Mia caught me gawking up at it. "The attic and roof levels. The lifts, they all stop at the Sky Throne. Only the builders may go higher, very dangerous this is." She took a small, short breath. "It was up there where the last queen fell."

The wheels of my chair rumbled across the uneven stone of a central walkway, marked by two lines of torch lamps. Soon, a domed chapel came into view before us, sparkling like a diamond against the cloudless afternoon sun. As we neared, it became clear that the walls of the chapel were made of glass, tens of thousands of transparent, blue panes, like the walls of a greenhouse.

We made our way through the heavy iron doors of the glass chapel, standing ajar, which were somehow both welcoming and foreboding at the same time. A dark velvet carpet ran down the center isle, ending at a dais which displayed the central focus of the room: a pair of giant, symmetrical thrones. The seats were made of clear white glass padded with dark velvet cushions, sleek and curved. The sunlight refracted through the glass furniture, shooting concentrated beams of glare onto several unlucky benches.

The room had an impressive 360 degree view of the entire valley. From this height, the buildings of the city below appeared as small as toy models. But the field of vision extended well beyond the city limits and onto the expansive outer landscape of the Kingdom; to the east and west were rolling green hills and Mountains, to the south the flat plains and forests, to the north the shimmering waters of the sea.

"They build it this way to remind the King where his duty lies," Mia said, sweeping her hand across her body. "You like it?"

"It's very beautiful," I said, holding up a hand to shield my eyes. My thumb brushed my sweat-slicked forehead and felt the run of make-up. "But...also very hot. And a bit too bright."

"Yes, many complain of this." She pointed up towards the ceiling, where dark velvet curtains were rolled up between each pillar, matching the center carpet. "So now when the King enters, the curtains go down."

My eyes followed her finger up the wall, then immediately darted to the painted mural they found on the ceiling.

It was in a mid-century Renaissance style, not unlike a religious fresco one might find in the Vatican. The focus was a pearly white city sitting in the clouds. As I gaped up at the painting, I realized that the skyline was familiar.

It's Manhattan, I thought with a jolt, except not...

It's much, much cleaner.

I squinted to take in the finer details of the mural, to make sure my eyes were not deceiving me. No, it was definitely New York City. The tallest buildings might not have been in exactly the right places, but they were all present: the needle of the Empire State Building, the sleek obelisk shaped World Trade Center, the iconic crown of the Chrysler Building.