INTEGER UNLIMITED

Leo followed Marem through the streets of Edheim, until he was nearly stopped by the place she’d wanted to visit. Hundreds of strands of multicolored light danced through the streets and the skies. He saw the light change from a street away, but it was only up close that he could see the source.

In the middle of a clear plaza, there was a brilliant fountain made of crystal. Millions of crystals fused together, with water flowing through the structure. Wherever the water touched, colorful light burst forth. Every step closer caused the lights to become far more passionate in their dance.

“Holy shit,” was the only thing Leo managed to say.

“This is the fountain of light, it’s one of my favorite places,” she explained.

Leo struggled as he tried to take in the abundance of light. “It’s definitely stunning. Is there a story behind it?”

“There is, actually. It was made from the pieces of Nacibrill,” answered Marem.

He turned to her, “What’s Nacibrill?”

“Wow, you really aren’t from here. Nacibrill was this dragon made out of crystal and glass. She was planning to attack Edheim, so the living legends stepped in to stop her. It was fifteen years ago, and they barely managed to stop her attack,” Marem reached out and touched the fountain. “After they killed her, the kingdom used her body. They made art to symbolize the strength of the people, such as this fountain.”

“The living legends?” he asked.

“That’s just a title given to the adventurers who helped defeat Nacibrill. You might be able to meet them at some point.”

“That’s cool.”

The two of them stood by the fountain, marveling at the beauty that shone with each ray of light. They spent a while just seeing all the patterns of color available, all the ways that the hues of the rainbow could dance for them. Eventually, Marem led Leo to the next location.

They walked towards the east, escaping the vast rays of light through the sidestreets. While most alleys on Earth were filled with garbage, these were fairly clean. The graffiti seemed to stay the same, though. There were countless symbols and sayings placed upon the brick walls.

Leo was pulled in by the odd way the art moved in this world. There was paint that glimmered in the light, and some of the detailed drawings moved, similar to the symbol on the castle’s walls. Despite the beautiful murals and living drawings, some parts were still uniquely human. There were countless writings about spells to cast for a good time and markings of people who had been there before.

After they’d gone through dozens of back alleys and passages, they reached an odd clearing filled with people. There seemed to be a large crowd gathered on a square near the middle of the street, marked off with bright red bricks.

Leo was about to ask Marem what was happening when a shadow suddenly overtook the sky. He looked up to find himself unable to tell what was floating above them. His attention was diverted once more when the ground started to shake.

He saw the square full of people lift up from the ground. The square broke apart from the floor and began to float into the air. The people struggled for a second with the sudden lurch forward, but they stood calm as the ground stabilized and began to float away.

He saw people take a few steps back as the floating square lowered itself into the opening. Most of the people on it quickly scurried off. Marem grabbed Leo’s hand and pulled him into the crowd that was quickly getting on the new platform.

She beamed, “This is the sky ferry! It’s mostly for tourists, but it gives you a nice view of Edheim.”

The space around them was quickly filling with new people. “What if we can’t get to the edge to see?”

“They project the view above us, but seeing it in person is better.”

Only a few minutes later, the ground they were on began to shake as another platform approached. Leo tried his best to stay standing as they moved into the sky.

In the distance he spotted a small kid fall off the edge of the platform. His muscles tensed as he was about to burst forward to try and save the child. Suddenly, the kid bounced back up, as if the empty space knocked him back on his feet.

His muscles loosened as he realized that the ride had eased out. While there was a sudden lurch at the beginning, it turned into a peaceful rumble that felt like a massage on the feet. He looked over to Marem to find her staring up. Above them was a floating visual of the ground below them.

He saw thousands of people walking about, going about their day. Every block had something that drew Leo in. He could spend his whole life in Edheim and never get tired of the sights that it held. The other cities and towns he had seen felt simple in comparison.

The ride was peaceful, just a beautiful sight of the city. A nice way to relax before what would surely be a stressful few months. It wouldn’t be easy to fight the calamities that planned to destroy the world, but he was willing to put everything he had towards stopping them.

There would be no peace for those that wished harm upon humanity.