Katie gently stepped onto the raft, expecting it to move erratically beneath her feet. But it barely moved at all. Koran got on next and Onix, almost gracefully, swept his legs over and onto the raft.
The old man that had already been on the raft used a large staff to push them away from the riverbank and towards the city.
While the basin was large and its current ran fast, the raft seemed to need no further steerage to guide itself across other than its initial push, ignoring the direction of the water.
When they reached the other side, the old man bowed his head, beckoning them to get off. Onix led the way. Katie and Koran followed him up white marble stairs.
Two guards stood at the top, one on each side. “They’re with me,” Onix said. “Chancellor Levi wants to see them both and asked to do so as soon as they arrived.”
The guards nodded without straying from their line of vision. Katie could tell that Onix had authority in the city.
Katie looked in awe while they walked through the city. There were many roads, light gray and all polished. Many people walked about. Katie noticed that everyone here looked happy. Not scared, not worried, just happy.
From the opposite side of the river, the city looked large and majestic, but you couldn’t fully appreciate its magnificent elegance. The sunlight reflected off the buildings, but it wasn’t blinding. The roads were larger where they wove around buildings, narrowing as they went into residential areas.
Every now and then, Katie would catch a glimpse of a small rainbow caused by the reflecting sunlight on the mineral-filled rocks that were the foundation of the city.
“How long have you been expecting us?” Koran asked. Katie wondered the same but didn’t bother to inquire because it seemed like many people already knew who she was.
“Both your fathers told us you two would soon arrive,” Onix answered. “You’re not the only ones we’re expecting.”
He said it in such a way that Katie felt that she shouldn’t ask any questions regarding what he had just said. Onix continued to guide them through the city, waving to some of the passersby who waved back.
After a short while, Onix told them that they would have to meet the Chancellor and the rest of the Council before he could let them rest.
“So the Chancellor is expecting us?” Katie asked.
“He is, though he doesn’t know that you are here, so it will be a bit of a surprise for him.”
“Does the Chancellor like surprises?” Koran asked.
“Some, yes,” replied Onix. “But not all.”
It took them over half an hour to reach the city hall, and even then, it took another five minutes to climb the stairs that led to the entrance. From here the mountain looked threatening, even if it was one of the smaller mountains Katie had seen.
“They will want to do a security check with the both of you,” said Onix. “Under usual circumstances, the two of you would have clearance. But times are proving to be unkind.”
A marble-stone pathway led them to the front doors where six guards stood, each carrying a thin staff that had a small orb floating above. The orb was made of a milky-white gas that swirled. For a brief moment, Katie thought she could see the reflection of lightning inside. When she looked again, all she could see were the otherwise quite ordinary misty clouds.
“I will be escorting Katie Dimes and Koran Padrigian to the Chancellor.”
The guards responded by not stopping them from entering but didn’t give so much as a nod.
Two more guards walked up, each carrying a staff.
“The man will come with me,” said one of the guards. Onix nodded to Koran, and Koran walked away into a room with the guard.
“I’ll see the lady over here,” said the other guard. Katie noticed that he had sounded more polite than the other.
Katie followed the guard into a room across from where Koran was. The room was small but could fit four people comfortably. There was a small table with a vase against the wall between two sets of chairs.
“I will start my scan,” the guard said.
Katie didn’t know what that meant, but she didn’t have time to ask. She gasped when he pointed the staff towards her. The cloudy orb grew larger and its swirls swam more violently than before. This time Katie could see the bolts of lightning within.
This went on for half a minute before the orb stopped swirling and glowed white. The guard withdrew the staff and set its base on the ground with a soft tap.
“You are clear,” he said. “Let me escort you back to the entrance chamber.”
The guard opened the door and walked Katie back to Onix. Koran was already there. The guard gave a polite nod to Onix before walking away.
“Let us move on,” said Onix. He walked across the large entrance room which Katie hadn’t noticed before. Its designs gloriously complemented the white stone walls, with sculptures carved into them and the colorful line of gems that ran across the ceiling. Candles hung from the ceiling, upside-down along the central walkway. Katie noticed that there were no drops of wax on the ground.
The ground was a white, glazed stone that had a mural made of varying degrees of gray. It depicted a large mountain with several people at the base. A small winged creature hovered above the people.
Too stunned to ask questions, Katie followed Koran and Onix up the grand staircase to the second floor and went down a hall.
The halls were made of darker stone, yet it still glowed with the same eminence as the rest of the city.
Onix took them up another curved staircase, though this wasn’t as large as the one in the grand chamber.
