The Sea Devil's Eye - Mel Odom [102]
Pacys gazed at the city as the caravan closed on it. He heard the haunting singing that came from somewhere among the city's empty buildings. Some of the Alu'Tel' Quessir's legends had it that the city was now haunted by the ghosts of those who'd been slain during the sahuagin invasion of the Tenth Seros War.
As he got closer, the old bard was able to make out the four quarters of the city and identify them from the maps he'd seen. The Elves' Quarter-a place of libraries and villas-lay in the northeastern corner of the city, covered over by the thick layers of aqua-colored cryscoral. What had been the Trade Quarter lay to the south of the Elves' Quarter. The Alu'Tel'Quessir histories had it that markets and entertainment had once ruled there, powered by the merchants who traded with those above and below. Now tiger-coral reefs grew rampant, closing most of the buildings from sight. The Law Quarter-the now-deserted seat of the sea elf government-occupied the southwestern corner of Myth Nantar. Tiger-coral grew from the roofs of the tallest buildings in Myth Nantar, making them even taller.
The least devastated area of the City of Destinies was the Dukar Quarter. Lucent coral street lamps lined the surprisingly clear streets. Pacys easily recognized the Dukarn Academy by the arrangement of four rectangular buildings facing the octagonal Paragon's College. Crafted of opulent pearl, the Palace of lenaron stood nestled up against Mount Halaath along Maalirn's Walk and picked up the glow from the lucent coral climbing the mountain. The Keep of Seven Spires stood two stories tall, then branched into seven four-story towers all made of green marble.
At the center of the City of Destinies, where Maalirn's Walk, Chamal Avenue, the Street of Ser-Ukcal, and the Promenade of Kupav all came together, the Fire Fountain shot twisting yellow and orange flames into the sea. It burned hot enough to actually warm the currents within the mythal. Pacys had read that the flames had burned more than nine hundred years. Three Gates' Reef got its name from the arches over the three roads that exited the city. Maalirn's Walk ended at Mount Halaath.
The city's illumination made everything seem normal despite the crusty coral growth spread throughout the streets and buildings. The Great Barrier was invisible to the naked eye save as an occasional shimmering in the water. It looked as though Pacys could swim right into the city.
He saw the first of the advance warriors colliding with the Great Barrier. They drew back at once in stunned disbelief, then tested their tridents against the mythal's might. The impacts rang like steel on stone.
Pacys and Khlinat joined Reefglamor as the Senior High Mage swam toward the Great Barrier. The glow from the lucent coral washed the color from Reefglamor, lending him an ethereal pallor. Together, they sank toward Myth Nan tar.
"It's a beautiful place!" Pacys said.
"It was," Reefglamor said, his eyes sweeping the city. "It is my fervent wish that before I die I should be able to swim these streets, to touch the things that my ancestors once touched."
"Perhaps you shall."
Pacys stretched his toes down, fully expecting to touch the solid surface at any moment. Instead, he was surprised to find himself sliding on through where the Great Barrier should have been.
"Pacys!" Khlinat's startled yelp followed the metallic thunk the dwarfs peg made when it crashed against the Great Barrier. He made a quick grab for the old bard's hand but missed. "Marthammor Duin take me for a-"
The rest of the dwarfs expletive was cut off. Looking up through the shimmering haze that separated him from the sea elves and the dwarf, Pacys realized that he was on the other side of the Great Barrier.
More of the sea elf warriors descended on the protective shielding and tried to force their way through with their weapons. Pacys never even heard their efforts through the shimmering haze. The old bard swam upward but found the way blocked. He put his hands against the Great Barrier and tried to will himself through.