THE PRINCESS OF ÉLEVÉ

The Days of the Great King

Princess Mia woke once again to the sound of the stream. Other than the tiny trickle, the dark oppressive silence was all too familiar. She'd been captive in this dungeon, or tomb as she thought of it, for so long she could no longer count the days. Food wafers had run out some weeks before, and she was very weak. Only the water and long bouts of sleep, as if hibernating, had kept her alive. As usual, her memories comforted her.

Princess Mia's earliest recollections were those of being a small child sitting on the knee of her grandfather, the King. She listened to his stories of the early days of the war, a terrible conflict over control of land and resources. The dark forces from the underground, the Dungé, started the war and soon had the Elévé on their heels, in full retreat. The Elévé, the rulers, lived on the highest parts of the city. They were able to stop the advances only after forming an alliance with the Midé, who lived around the rim of the great lake, between the two tribes. Her grandfather told her of the great battles he led, the victories in particular. She never tired of hearing these stories of danger and valor.

He told her how they fought battles above ground and all around the lake, and how the battles spread to the outlying settlements way beyond the rim of the mountain. Eventually, after the Midé joined the war, the Dungé retreated below ground, and the war continued deep into the vast labyrinth of passageways below the high places. The Dungé finally surrendered after many lives were lost.

A long period of prosperity and peace followed the war, and the building of the great city continued at a furious pace. It was magnificent, she remembered, with high towers and walkways high in the sky. Her grandfather retired as King, and her father became the new leader. She often walked with him, gazing with awe as the vast city took shape around her. The buildings and parapets and arches and gardens and bridges continued as far as her eye could see.

She learned that the high towers were part of the vast energy system above and below ground. They collected sunlight and directed the energy down to the surface. Below ground the tunnels had special geothermal energy collection devices that went close to the vast heated underground magma chamber. This was converted to energy and directed back to a central site as well. All this energy allowed the city to be filled with twinkling beacons at night.

She loved these long walks with her father, and used these precious moments to ask questions of him about everything she saw and heard. She learned valuable lessons about architecture and building, energy, and the many inventions of this society. It was during this period that her father started writing his journal on the tablets. They would discuss aspects of it and she sometimes would offer comments.

"Ummm!" he would mumble, "I'll have to say something about that."

But always she would look forward to the stories from her grandfather before she went to sleep. As she grew older, the nature of the stories changed. She had always asked many questions, much to the amusement of her grandfather, but as she grew more knowledgeable, she wanted to know more about their ancient history and their ancestors.

One of the topics she learned to avoid was the subject of her mother, who had died shortly after she was born. When she asked about her, neither Mia's father nor grandfather wished to discuss it. What she learned, she learned from other close members of the family. She learned that her mother was considered the most beautiful woman in the land. She had many suitors but fell in love with her father. It was a storybook romance, and Mia was the only child. But when she asked how she died, everyone changed the subject. So she learned to ask questions about the past that were less personal, and much more general.