Ascendants of Ancients Sovereign - By Phillip Jones Page 0,38

was from their current location.

Shalee studied the gold frame that the map had been placed inside. “Sam, can you believe the beauty of this place? Sure, big snakes slithering everywhere is kind of creepy, but if you look past that, this place is incredible. There isn’t anything on Earth that comes close. I’ve never seen such detail. Everything is so ornate. I’d love to study the blueprints.”

Mosley interrupted. “The temple is an exception. Many dens on Southern Grayham are not as exquisite. Bassorine felt that many locations throughout the kingdoms should remind you of your old homeworld. The Collective wished for your transition to be as smooth as possible. If you ever see the other worlds, their look and feel will not be like Southern Grayham. Because of my service to Bassorine, my eyes have seen these differences.”

Sam and Shalee looked at each other and shrugged, unable to imagine the concept of another world being so accessible. Sam’s mind churned with questions, but the temple doors leading to the outside world opened. The doors were enormous and required a slow, steady pace to accomplish the task. Numerous hinges, almost as long as Sam’s Mustang convertible and about as wide, supported weight equal to 30 elephants. At 40 paces tall, the doors arched toward each other at the top.

Sam studied the doors and thought, They must be two meters thick. They can’t be gold. Gold would be too heavy. “Shalee, can you imagine the sound they would make if they slammed into the wall? This place had to cost an arm and a leg to build.”

Mosley tilted his head. “Sam, I can assure you the gods accepted no arms or legs as payment for the temple’s construction.”

“Don’t be silly, Mosley,” Shalee quipped. “He didn’t mean it literally.” She chuckled. “I look forward to seeing more of Grayham.”

“I’m sure you will enjoy yourself, Shalee,” Mosley replied. “I find Sam’s comment to be curious.” The wolf thought a moment and then shook off the awkwardness. “The temple is unlike any other den on this world. Grayham does, however, have many wondrous destinations.”

Once outside, the humans were at a loss for words. The view was breathtaking—a moment where the soul had to stop and absorb the magnificence. The temple was built on a large plateau. The structure sat quite a ways from the edge of a steep drop called Griffin Cliffs. It was more than 7,000 feet to the bottom, and all around the expansive steppe were natural springs that surfaced and pooled together before flowing over the edge. Many types of exotic flowers, as well as other species they had never seen, bloomed around the pools. The sight was glorious—beyond glorious—and Shalee could have stayed forever.

Sam studied his surroundings and figured there had to be at least a few hundred of these natural springs that fed peacefully into one another. The sound the water made as it rippled toward a large pooling area was soothing to his ears.

Moving closer to the edge of the cliffs, the group peered over. Sam could see and feel the energy of the falls. I wonder what the volume of water is that is released into the lands below. I can’t fathom how many gallons it would take to create a natural wonder of this magnitude.

The trio watched in silence as a cloud of mist billowed in all directions. The water from the falls hit the rocks below with such tremendous force that the mist covered an expansive area.

Mosley spoke. “Sam, the springs generate enough water to supply three kingdoms. The territories of Southern Grayham slope away from the temple.”

“I’ve never seen anything like it,” Sam responded. Taking a deep breath, he thought, This place makes Niagara Falls insignificant.

They worked their way clear of the precipice and toward a large platform made of wood. Its perimeter was encircled by a railing that offered a pretense of safety, and as they walked up the steps, Sam turned to Mosley and spit out a list of questions. “Okay, okay. I can see this is clearly not Earth.” Sam pointed to the south and then to the north at a colorful planet on each horizon. The world to the south radiated many purple hues while the other radiated a spectrum of orange which spawned more questions. “Where are we?”

Mosley looked confused. “I’ve already told you. Your paws have found their footing on Grayham. More specifically, Southern Grayham, on top of Griffin Cliffs. You saw the map inside the temple.”

Temple of the