Duality : Book 1 of Codex Elysium

chapter 2(edited)

Chapter 2

Three days ago

Elysium

Eva stood alone on the hilltop. A great ring of standing stones was at her back. Twenty-six stones stood in the ring all made from a dark grey stone which appeared almost black against the stormy sky. She stood surveying the ruined city below. The storm was in full force. Lightning struck, thunder rumbled, rain hammered down in sheets. Eva was miserable, cold and soaked to the skin. Her black druid robe hung heavily on her. She squelched in water-filled boots back and forth across the hilltop, muttering to herself about the unfairness of the situation. The only reason she remained was because she was under orders from Tiberius, the head of her order. He was very powerful and quick to lose his temper. Eva cursed his name at the thought of him sitting beside a roaring fire, laughing at her being out in the storm. The storm was the very reason she was there, it was what she was meant to be watching. Tiberius had told her there would be a very special and unique lightning strike. Lightning lit-up the sky and slammed into one of the tall buildings. Rubble and dust showered down on the street below.  A bit more mess to add to the city, but not what I'm looking for, she thinks.

On and on the storm raged.  Eva remained at her post, she felt so exposed on the hilltop and longed for the comforting feel of her quiver of arrows on her back or her longbow in her hands. Eva was a highly-skilled archer but she had been forced to leave her weapons behind. The bow would be of no use in this weather. She settled for adjusting the sword strapped at her waist. Lightning struck another building and more debris came crashing down. Eva crossed her arms and leaned against one of the stones, she has always found the layout and setting of the city odd. With nothing better to do she contemplates it again. The hill she is on leads down to a strip of waste land, then the city rises from its edge. The layout is roughly square in shape, perhaps it once had walls? Four great highways run towards the city, one from each main point of the compass. It is these roads that cause Eva problems. The south road makes sense, it runs across the coastal plain down to the sea, where there is a large ruin of a dockside or port. There is a large market area and many warehouses. It must have once been a major trading centre.  The eastern road also makes sense, it runs out across a vast wasteland. However, the wastelands are full of ruined towns and villages.  The north road runs straight towards the black mountains, a vast impassable range of snow-capped mountains that stretches all the way across the northern horizon.  The west road is also strange it runs straight to the Elysium forest; an endless dark and deep forest. It is old and tangled. It spreads from the south sea all the way up to the foot of the black mountains. All four roads run arrow-straight at the city. they keep their straight course all through the city until they meet in the centre in a very simple, pointless crossroads.

Eva was so lost in her own thoughts that she almost missed the moment she'd been waiting for. Lightning strikes straight down into the centre of the city, hitting the cross roads. It was just as Tiberius had predicted, the lightning was bright emerald green and had hit dead centre of the cross roads. Eva clenched her fists in frustration, already in her mind she could see Tiberius with that cocky know-it-all look in his eyes and the I-told-you-so look on the old man's face. With a frustrated sigh Eva turns her back on the city and stamps off into the storm, heading for home. Tiberius was sitting at his desk in the library, the room was packed with shelves stacked from floor to ceiling with books and papers. There was only one small window to let in light, up high on the wall above where he sat. Most of the room was in darkness, Tiberius sat in a small pool of orange light which came from a single candle, balanced precariously on a pile of books. Piles of books and papers were scattered haphazardly all over the floor and all over his large writing desk as well. Tiberius sat in his high-backed armchair studying a book when the door slammed open with great force, causing it to rattle in its frame. The candle nearly toppled over, Tiberius's hand shot out and steadied it. He carried on reading as if nothing had happened. He took his time finishing the page he was reading, then he looked up with an inquiring look on his face. Eva stood in the doorway soaking wet. Her long black hair was plastered to her skull, water dripped off her face and chin. Her dark eyes were burning with fury, mouth twisted in a snarl.