That was several lifetimes ago.
Since then I've been in hundreds of caves and every single time I think of Sharra and the tears she shed for our non-parents.
Standing on the precipice of another, while Titan's ugly troll face scanned mine, Sharra's image crossed my mind.
The beginning of the end, I thought sadly.
... "Snow's eyelashes fluttered. Did you see them?"
"Whatever is going on inside of her, I think it's almost at an end. Look at her skin. Completely back too normal. It shouldn't be much longer."
"You don't think... she isn't... dying, is she, Pops?"
"I'm not sure, Dorian. I hope not. For her sake, Gabe's... well, all our sakes. She's got to live."
"You hear that, Snow? We aren't giving you a choice. Come back."
Chapter 2
"Welcome to my secret fortress, Silindra," Titan said.
I grunted my response, walking past him to the doorway in the mountain, its entry bursting with light. The surface my feet touched was smooth and hard, like polished rock. But it wasn't rock. It was some kind of iron. It swayed slightly, and I grabbed hold of the rails.
This is incredible, Snow White said.
I agreed wholeheartedly. Metal catwalks crisscrossed each other, reminding me of a spider's web. Tall beams rose to the ceiling where millions of lights shone. It was as though Titan harnessed a portion of the sun, and somehow held its ray's captive within.
In the center of the mountain, and vertical, reaching the top and I guessed touching the bottom, was a thick grated tube. Inside the tube were two sets of stairs. One used to walk up, and the other for down. A steady flow of occupants used them; exiting through archways onto walkways like the one I was on. The walkways led to large, cylinder-shaped holes carved into the mountain.
Cautious, I glanced over the side and felt my throat drop into my stomach. A seemingly endless amount of walkways weaved from the center stairs, and downward.
I took a deep breath, noting the tang of something sour, like curdled milk. The voices of thousands echoed as trolls, fairies, gremlins, and other magical creatures busily rushed around. Like a strange city.
"What is this place," I finally asked.
"This is Varden. The place where all the scientific magic happens," he responded, pushing his bulky body past me, walking briskly along the path. The metal shuddered under his weight, and I held my breath. Snow let out a tiny scream.
I tried to calm my nerves and Snow's.
It'll hold him, I told her and myself. And I hoped I was right.
When he reached the stairs, he turned. "Do you want the strength of a troll or not?"
Lifting my chin, I said, "Of course I do." With pretend confidence, I reorganized my wings, and headed toward Titan.
He started down the stairs, and I followed.
I was surprised to see so many different creatures working side by side... in seeming harmony. They talked quietly amongst themselves. That's when I noticed each level led to at least ten different tunnels.
"Where are they going?" I asked. We were on the third level from the top, and moving down.
"Each level holds a different department. When a fairy, elf, dwarf, gremlin, vampire," he eyed me meaningfully, "comes to Varden, we discuss their talents, and then they get to work on whichever level suits them best. Those two," he began, pointing at an elf and a troll walking side by side, chatting excitedly. "They work in the efficiency department as part of a team creating sustainable energy."
It shocked me that the battle above didn't seem to affect anyone within Varden. Elves were killing trolls and vice versa above, yet these creatures didn't appear to care.
I shook my head in awed amazement. A vampire can't live a millennium and not see everything. At least that's what I told myself. But this truly was new. All species, including and especially the magical ones, kept to themselves. Elves lived and worked with elves, dwarves with dwarves, gremlins with gremlins, vampires with vampires, fairies with fairies. It was the way life went. Order was kept by adherence to the rules. Yet in the heart of the enormous mountain, those lines were crossed-blurred into extinction. Didn't these creatures understand they were messing with age-old laws? Surely, at some point, their blatant disregard would destroy them.
"I know what you're thinking." Titan stepped off the stairs onto a metal hallway. "Do you?" I asked, joining him.