SOLO III
Demon World
Part 015
Ada floats up and out. "Come
on.
Home is under that city over there."
No sooner do you think about following and it happens. The
three
of you
fly down to the lake diving like eagles. Skimming over the bubbly
popping
surface at high speed you zip out over the burning lake. A
mixture
of soot
and molten rock vent hot gas as the glowing surface zooms by
underneath.
You feel no heat at all.
Rebbecca and Ada are watching you. As
you
stop sight seeing you look
ahead to the city. There is a huge iron ship at dock. The
magma
just flows
around it. No sooner do you look at it and it seems to rush up to
you
instantly. The three of you are floating next to it now.
Massive
rivits
running down the sides. A wicked looking cannon on the prow on
two
huge
wheels but held by six chains. There is no mast, but there is a
two
story
iron house on the back third of the ship. Over three hundred
meters
long,
it is enormous. The windows on the back house are barred and look
like
cell
windows to some kind of metal jail.
The three of you float straight through the
ship.
The hold is filled
with crates of fruit and vegetables. On the other side the docks
are
a
bustle of activity. Huge burrly men with black leather hoods,
black
leather
pants, belt, and boots are running down the gang plank with a crate
over
the
shoulder. Another line of the men is running up a gang plank
further
along
the ship, but their hands are empty. They all have iron wrist
bands
as
well.
The dock side empties into a huge empty
courtyard,
except for the
gillotine in the middle. The walls are black shiny basaltic
glass.
There a
are narrow steps carved so soldiers can mount the tops of the
walls.
And
there are. About eighty men are facing away from the dock.
They
wear full
length black leather cloaks, lightly holding long bows, and lounging
around.
Through a large arch on the other side is some
kind
of town square with
an actual water fountain. With actual fresh water. But the
courtyard
is
teaming with the saddest mass of humanity you have ever seen.
This
miserable city has got to be grossly over populated. But all
these
poor
bare foot people are quite in their sadness, and stand in endless slow
moving lines to approach the water. You realise that about half
have
a
shallow little cup about three fingers deep and the other half don't
have
anything at all. Just their eagerly cupped hands.
Skimming through the courtyard you see no
children.
Widening out
through the city you see a strange sight. Wooden bunk beds.
Stacked
eighteen high and spread out like a miniature city of towers all by
itself.
All the rows of bunk beds are connected together for support with cross
beams and ladders.
This takes a bit longer to search. You
become
convinced that these
bunks are their homes. You see all their possessions hanging in
their
bunks
and up to three people sleeping in one. And every person you have
seen
has
a pair of those iron wrist bands.
Further into the city is up hill. And
closer
to the dark smokey sky.
As you move further from the lake of fire you move up the rim of the
crator.
The middle seciton of the city is only reachable by a couple of
ramps
and
a few stairs.
This section has people with shirts. And
vendors
selling fruit and
vegetables for silver coins or small ivory statues. The streets
are
lined
with various shops and industries. Smithing, leatherwork, wheels,
chain
making, mechanical locks, cauldrons, tong and tool smiths. Smoke
is
coming
from all four corners of every building here.
It is also here that you spot a child.
It
is fleeing to the edge of
town, while trying to eat an ear of corn. He is running amazingly
fast
for
having both hands to his mouth.
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