The Elementals | Book 1. The Cliffs of Immensi

Chapter 22

Emanai had left the day before. She was gathering materials that they would need to have in a house, which they would build if they returned from their journey.

"Wow." Andrea's jaw dropped as they emerged from the forest, colossal cliffs towering high above them. "It's so beautiful."

The cliffs soared up into the sky, seeming to form a staircase which ascended into the clouds. They continued on into the distance, sheer cliff faces which seemed as if they would be impossible to scale. They appeared to form a pattern that could not be deciphered; a puzzle in itself.

Andrea rushed forward to scramble up part of the wall. Reaching a ledge a number of meters off the ground, she looked back over the road that they had traveled. It had taken them many days and different forms of traveling to reach the cliffs, and they had finally arrived.

As the falling sun spread its light, the cliffs seemed to have an inner glow. They seemed warm and welcoming, as if they were not made of hard, cold granite. Yet there was still something mysterious about them, as if there were some secret that was yet to be unlocked.

As the others walked towards the cliffs, Concord made a platform for them to mount so that they could travel up the cliffs without having to make the treacherous climb. As they settled down upon it, he began to raise it up into the air. Omar gave it a little boost to make it go faster, and soon they were well on their way to the top of the cliffs.

As they shot upwards, the wind gently sifted through Cascade's hair, a cold chill racing through her. She almost wanted to ask Andrea to make a small flame, but she didn't. She wanted to enjoy the cold of the wind, and the view, which grew ever more magnificent. Cascade shook her head as they ascended higher and higher. The world that they lived in was so beautiful. She simply could not understand why Sephtis or Vespara would ever want to destroy it. For she was sure that would be the result of letting strange, vicious creatures out of a trench and using them to conquer the world. A demolition of the beautiful, green world that they lived in.

As the sun started to disappear below the horizon, the cliffs became shrouded in shadows. A light mist settled down upon it, and it seemed that the mysteries that the cliffs held only deepened.

Andrea shivered in the cold of the evening. The sun had gone down and mist showered down upon her.

Cascade saw Andrea shiver, and raised a hand, stopping the mist from enveloping her. Andrea shivered once more, then seemed to recover from the chill of the mist and become warmer once more.

"Thanks." Andrea whispered. It seemed that if she spoke any louder, then it would disrupt the peace and quiet of the cliffside, where there was no noise other than a faraway waterfall, the rustling of leaves in the wind, a few lonely crickets, and the whisper of her voice.

Cascade nodded in reply, not even willing to go so far as to speak. The peace seemed to surround them completely, and for a moment Cascade almost forgot that they were trying to stop Sephtis. It just seemed so unbelievable that he would be at the cliffs and they could still look so peaceful and unscathed.

A small smile spread across Cascade's face for the first time in days. Ever since her meeting with the creature made of roots, she hadn't really gotten the chance to smile much. Every time they reached a new place, it seemed there was something corrupted by Sephtis, or some place that had been robbed. Some dark reminder of Sephtis' deeds that he had done before they had arrived, too late to stop him.

Now simply given a larger view, not a confined one that only showed her the path in front of them, but rather all the possible paths, Cascade saw that Sephtis had only caused havoc in a small area. As of so far, the world was safe. Cascade was reassured by the peace and quiet of the cliffs that there was still something left. That something would still be there for them, even if they failed.