Icarus Read online

  The man smirked, his slim mustache curling up. “Yeah, I could of but that woulda been wooooooork. And I’ve been having such a good time relaxin’.”

  “Is that why nobody else has been opening their doors?” Jake asked. The man nodded, muttering “probably” under his breath. Jake raised an eyebrow and turned to Elizabeth, and she was doing the same. He’d heard about cultural differences, but this man’s behavior was absurd. Figuring that this guy wasn’t worth questioning further, Jake asked him where the local government building was located. He nodded and pointed. “It’s easy, you just gotta go that way, then that way,” he continued to point in all directions, and even made a circle in the air. Jake sighed. He supposed this man had no concept of east or west or even up or down for that matter.

  Jake trekked through the grass, his head held low. His companions followed after and they all clambered over the fence.

  “That was a bit… odd,” Sara said once she was on even footing.

  “Totally odd. Ain’t you glad I investigated further?” Dante asked.

  “You hardly ‘investigated’ anything. My theory is that you peeked over the fence, saw the man, then charged and tried to attack him,” Elizabeth said.

  Dante scoffed and folded his arms. “Yeah, well it worked out didn’t it?”

  “Only because we stopped you!” Jake yelled.

  Dante stuck out his tongue and continued down the street once more. Without a better idea, Jake decided to follow him, Sara and Elizabeth at his sides.

  “You’d figure they’d have a guard or something watching the entrance,” Jake muttered.

  “Or someone patrolling the streets… something,” Elizabeth returned.

  The four passed by wooden buildings, all with fenced-off backyards and presumably a lazy owner lounging within. They continued through the neighborhood and into a more wooded area, rich with trees baring fine fruits and benches placed about. Jake figured this must’ve been a park. It wasn’t much, but at least the landscape was changing. It wouldn’t be long until they encountered something or someone useful.

  Once they were out of the park they came across something very promising. The buildings were much larger and had a more formal style of architecture, and were constructed of stone rather than wood. This was either an upper-class housing district or where the government resided. Jake and company stepped onto the cobblestone street and headed for the promising building directly ahead, which had a dome-like top and arches lining its front.

  The building didn’t actually have a door, instead opting for just an open entryway, which Jake thought was fitting for the nation that allowed anyone who was strong enough to climb a rope entry without any kind of resistance. Once inside, Jake’s face lit up. Crossing the foyer was a man clad in a long robe. Jake called out to him and waved. The man stopped and turned his head, then patiently waited for the youths to approach him.

  “Excuse me, are you with the local authorities?”

  “I suppose you could say that. Are you by chance… a groundling?”

  It took a little for Jake to register what the term ‘groundling’ meant, but it wasn’t super difficult to figure out given the context of the floating city. He nodded. Almost immediately and without warning, the man jerked forward and grasped Jake’s hands. He tried to pull away, but the man held on tight. The guy was clearly insane, inspecting Jake’s palms as if there was something of importance there, then looked up, his eyes shining.

  “It’s just— it’s just been ages since we’ve had visitors,” he looked behind Jake, his eyes lingering on each of his comrades in turn. “And so many!” He wrapped an arm around Jake and led him further into the temple, and from behind he heard Dante snicker. “Come, come, all of you. We’ll secure lodgings for you and throw a festival tomorrow in your honor! Please, stay and make yourselves right at home!”

  The man, who introduced himself as Light, led them through the building, which must have been a twisting maze of hallways based on the number of left and right turns he made. It was unnaturally dark and musty, with the scent of wet stone permeating the building. Despite this, the way was lit in places by crackling torches that were hung on the wall.

  As they walked, Light told them that technically there wasn’t a government, only a holy church that saw over the day-to-day operation of the nation. People attended a ceremony once a week, and Jake and company had just missed it as it was held that very morning. It was odd hearing them talk about a religion as most of the major belief systems had died out over time, but this region must have been isolated for a long time, since their way of life was completely intact, and their technology – based on the torches and the way the man eyed Jake’s Sol rifle – was apparently primitive.

  Soon the shadows faded as they came out of the other side of the building, walking onto a grassy field with a few wooden ranches lining the way before them. The man led them inside one, where a boy in similar garb waited behind a desk, flipping through a book and not even noticing as they came in. The man coughed, and the desk worker sprang up, looking at the four travelers as if they were some kind of Malice. Light turned to the group and folded his hands before his waist.

  “You’ll have to forgive Ratio’s lack of preparation. We rarely get visitors, so it’s easy for him to get distracted.” He then turned to the boy known as Ratio. “We have four travelers, two males and two females. Please set them up in the appropriate rooms.” The boy stumbled to leave the counter and rushed down the hall, clearly in a hurry to get everything ready. As his heavy footfalls faded into the distance, Light turned to the group.

  “Ratio will have you set up momentarily. Please feel free to explore the place at your leisure. Someone will come to get you tomorrow when the shadows are here,” he said, pointing down. With that, he started to walk away, but Jake still had many questions. He called out to the man, a bit louder than he would have liked, although Light didn’t seem upset at all, meeting the boy with soft features. With a million questions rushing through his head, Jake didn’t know which one he should ask first. He figured he shouldn’t bother the man too much, as he seemed very important, and instead asked if there was a library nearby. Light looked to the sky, as if searching for something within the nearby clouds. Jake couldn’t figure what was so difficult about the question, but then realized that these people’s language must have been untouched for centuries. Even though they could carry out a conversation, certain terms were bound to be the source of confusion.

  “A place where a lot of books are kept and loaned out?” Jake offered. Smashing his fist into his open palm, Light nodded then pointed into the distance, where the land began to slope upward. “Just beyond that way,” he said, then thanked Jake and company for their tourism and was off.

  When he was back inside the building, Dante snickered, then waved his hand. “And you guys were worried that they’d be assholes, but it turns out they’re the nicest group of assholes I’ve ever met,” he said.

  “That doesn’t mean you can act like a buffoon,” Elizabeth said.

  “They look like a theocracy, and I’m not sure if you’re aware but history indicates that ancient religions can be pretty strict. I’d recommend keeping on your toes, and that doesn’t go for just Dante, we can all afford to be a little bit more careful than normal,” Jake said. Elizabeth and Sara nodded, and after the two gave Dante a death glare, he begrudgingly agreed. With that out of the way, Jake waved to the group and started up the hill to look for the library.

  “I’m gonna do some research, hopefully come up with a few ground rules. You guys enjoy your rooms,” he said. From behind, he heard Dante say something, although he couldn’t make it out. It didn’t matter anyway – Sara and Elizabeth would keep him in check.

  ***

  “Like I’m just gonna sit here and wait for them to come back with a room,” Dante mumbled, his eyes fixed on Jake’s back as he walked up the hill. Sara didn’t understand why he couldn’t just wait, it wouldn’t be too long and they might ta
ke it as rude if they didn’t, but then she remembered what Light said. He did say they could explore the place at their leisure, and she was pretty eager to see what else this land had going for it. The whole vista was dense with trees, and Sara wanted to get a closer look. Since Dante did say he wanted to explore a bit, she grabbed him by the forearm and dragged him along as she set off. He resisted at first, but then caught on that she was exploring, or maybe misinterpreted that she was up to mischief, and let her drag him along. Still pulling on his forearm, Sara called to Elizabeth from over her shoulder.

  “You stay and wait for the guy, just in case.”

  Elizabeth’s posture was abnormally straight, as if she was made uncomfortable by something, but Sara couldn’t pinpoint what. With an eyebrow raised, she nodded, then turned and headed deeper into the building. Sara locked her eyes forward, and narrowed them against the setting sun, which painted the horizon in delicate hues of orange and red. She wasn’t sure where she was going, but she thought heading toward the myriad colors was a good start. From behind, Dante finally stopped resisting and matched her pace, striding to keep at her side. She took note that he’d fallen in line and loosened her grip on his forearm, dropping her hand to her side. She was aware of his own hand, hanging just below his waist and inches from brushing her own. She shook her head, then locked her eyes forward.

  When she reached the top of the hill and the rest of the countryside came into view, Sara let out an astonished gasp. Ahead of her was the end of the great floating landscape they were on, but not the end of the country. Little hunks of earth floated away from the main landmass, maybe a dozen or so at a time, which made a makeshift bridge that led to an island, upon which there was a stone structure, although Sara couldn’t make out the specifics due to the setting sunlight that reflected into her eyes. Almost equally amazing, she saw the rolling landscape that they traversed to get here, including the forest, which was now a simple sea of dark green. Astonished and eager to explore the strange floating island, Sara headed toward it.

  Once she was at the very edge of the land, she felt a bit less enthusiastic about it all. She was now aware of the frantic wind that blew her hair all over the place, which on the mainland had felt calming but now felt dangerous and chaotic. She was likewise aware of the dim rise and fall of Icarus, which reminded her of the stories she’d heard about the ocean, although now it felt like it was shaking, as if experiencing an earthquake. She was scared, and as she peered over the edge she was made even more aware of how high up they were and she took a fearful step back. She knew it was silly, the jump to the first floating piece of land couldn’t be much more than three feet, but the threat of falling kept her heart beating fast.

  Then Dante whirled past her and jumped onto the floating landmass, leaping from one to the other with almost zero pause. She wasn’t sure if he had a plan of action if he fell off, but she doubted it. Still, his confidence was a much-needed boost, and she smirked, then jumped to the first floating platform.

  When she landed, she fell to all fours. The island shifted with her momentum and moved ever so slightly forward, but it was enough to scare the crap out of her. She stayed there, her palms edged into the thin grass, willing it to stop moving. When she was sure that it was no longer sliding forward and only floating up and down, she looked up and prepared to stand. Ahead was Dante, looking over his shoulder with an eyebrow raised. He seemed to be wondering what the heck was taking her so long. Annoyed, Sara jerked up to a stand and hopped from floating island to floating island, eager to catch up with the boy, although it was pointless, as he was just then stepping onto the largest piece of land. A stone structure stood in the center, two trees laden with mysterious fruit at its side. It wasn’t long before Sara reached him, and she cleared the gap with a thud, carrying the momentum to jog to his side.

  Dante stood still, glaring at the odd structure. She wasn’t sure why, it looked like a pretty standard holy landmark. It was a small building, not much more than a chapel really, with pillars presiding over its entryway and a closed pair of doors, both of which were made of stone. The top of it was lined with ancient writing that Sara couldn’t decipher, as well as a few pictographs. Weirdest of all, Dante’s eyes scanned along the top at a slow and steady pace. She raised an eyebrow, and without thinking spoke.

  “Don’t tell me you can’t read normal writing, but somehow understand ancient script?”

  His eyes sprung open and he jerked back as if Sara had awakened him from some strange trance. His eyes rested on her for a second, almost like he had to register who and where he was, then his ordinary demeanor was back and he shook his head.

  “Nah I can’t read it or nothin’, it’s just…” He directed his attention back to the top of the structure, his eyes narrowing as they took in the ancient masonry. “Part of it looks, I don’t know, kind of familiar.”

  “Familiar how?”

  “That’s what I don’t get. Maybe just the type of writing or something. Like I’ve seen it before.”

  “You went inside that ancient tower right? Was there writing there?”

  He snapped his fingers and nodded. “Yeah, that’s where I’ve seen it, it was lining the walls all the way at the bottom. I couldn’t tell what it said, but these are definitely the same letters and shit.” Then an idea seemed to pop into his mind and he gritted his teeth, scanning his eyes all over the structure. “But then where are the…” he said, the words barely audible. Sara wasn’t sure what his fascination was, but since he was focused on the monument, she suggested that they check inside. He broke out of his trance and looked at her, nodded, then slid the stone slabs that created the entrance open.

  As soon as the way was clear, Dante charged into the building then came to an immediate stop. She followed him in and headed for a shadowy room.

  At first Sara couldn’t make anything out as her eyes were adjusted to looking at the bright colors of the sunset. Things became clearer suddenly, the room bathed in a faint blue light that reminded her of the streetlights of the Republic, and she turned her head to see that Dante had created a ball of energy. It floated in the palm of his hand, growing brighter and fainter as if it were breathing. Dante’s eyes were not on the orb, or Sara for the matter, and were glaring at the area just in front of them. Sara looked forward, ready to see now that the space was well lit.

  Directly ahead in the center of the room was some sort of column with a raised platform about the size of a person. It was odd, but it wasn’t what Dante was staring at, evident by him taking shallow steps past it, his eyes fixed on the wall behind. Sara followed him, then looked closely at the wall that so fascinated him.

  Again, Sara didn’t see the big deal. She looked at the inscriptions and noticed that there was a basic creation story featuring a man creating another man. The next image had the two of them fighting, one with sun cast behind them and the other the moon. It was followed by a person with long flowing hair approaching the night person, getting injured, and the night person killing the sun person. After that, several hooded figures all surrounded the night person and the next image showed a ball where they had been.

  It was strange, but probably the basis for religion here, and who was Sara to judge? She shrugged, and almost turned around and walked out. She figured that if she thought nothing of it then certainly the attention impaired Dante would too, but that didn’t happen. He still stared daggers into the thing.

  “Did you see something like this inside the tower?”

  “Not exactly, no. Some are the same, like the picture of the shit dude, but a lot of it was smashed up. People didn’t look after that place like they do this one. More importantly there wasn’t this,” he pointed at the image of the sun and moon person fighting, then ran his finger down the line, ending at the image of the sun person being killed. “Or this one.” He folded his arms and looked down. “Speaking of what’s here, you know what isn’t?”

  Sara almost called him an idiot – how was she supposed to know anythin
g about stone carvings in an ancient tower that she’d never been in? – but then she remembered the conversation they’d had inside the diner, the very reason that they were here in the first place. Sara flipped her head back to the carvings and ran her eyes over the entire thing. Dante pointed out the monster they had fought, as well as a dragon and a serpent showed up in a scene toward the end.

  She continued to trace over the images, and was shocked to see that there was space for another, but the stone surface was bashed in. She would have thought nothing of this, it was an old building after all, but the rest was so pristine and well maintained… looking at the cracked stone gave her a bad vibe, as if the damage had been intentional. She shivered all over.

  She heard a soft step, and turned to see Dante heading into the fading light outside. She followed him, eager to be out of the place as her new suspicions about it made her feel like it was alive. As she exited, she could have sworn that the cracked image had grown eyes and stared into the back of her head.

  Up ahead, Dante leaned over the edge of the floating island, ready to jump from platform to platform to arrive back on the mainland. Something about this island still bothered Sara, despite the fact that from a glance all that seemed to be to it was this temple. There was a nipping sensation at the back of her mind, like the solution to an unknown problem was right at hand. She almost said something to Dante about it, but the boy began hopping from platform to platform with an eagerness that suggested he was jumping over a lazy river as opposed to being high in the sky. Still, not wanting to be alone on the strange island, Sara took a hesitant jump and followed.

  ***

  Jake sighed and walked in the direction of his lodging, which he hoped would be ready by now. He was lucky that the people here still spoke the same language as him, but it was clear that a lot of the terms were very different. He tried reading up on the history, but there were so many unique words and phrases that he had to give up after just a few minutes of skimming. There were constant references to ‘The Great Woman’, some kind of calamity, and a bunch of buzzwords that mentioned mythological events that must have been ingrained into the people here, but were a complete mystery to him. The search was useless, and he walked into the open doorway with his head low.