As we approached the guard at the gate, he perked up and saluted us. It was clear that he and Ryth knew one another. Ryth smiled a friendly smile and met with the guard alone.
"Ryth, sir! Welcome back!" the guard stated enthusiastically. "Who are the others?"
"They are," Ryth said as he pointed to each of us, "Prince Cryos of Draconia… Keia Luminachi, friend of Cryos… Ceae, another friend of Cryos… Vegance… And Rona Slove, the very one I went off to search for."
"Pleased to meet your acquaintances," the guard said to us. He turned back to Ryth. "So, what is your business in the Heaven-Realm?"
"We need to speak to Rysta," Ryth said.
"Rysta? Well, that should not come as a surprise to me… After all, you are her messenger…"
"Yeah, I know. Is m'Lady available?"
"Very much so. You know the way to Babylon, so go right in." The guard waved his hand in front of the gates and they opened in an instant. As we stepped through into the city of Omega, Ryth waved back at the guard.
Keia stopped walking soon after we got through the gates. "Ryth, you never told us that you were Rysta's messenger…"
"I thought I did?" Ryth replied.
"Actually, no, you never mentioned it," Vegance said.
"Oh… Must've slipped my mind. You all know it now… I run errands for Rysta. She was the one who sent me to find Rona…"
"I thought you did it on your own free will?" Rona asked.
"Look, being Rysta's messenger is supposed to be a secret job… No one is supposed to know who her messengers are, because that makes it a little harder to change peoples' minds if they know exactly who you are. No one else in Draconia is to know my role, understand?"
"I have no problem keeping it a secret… Promise," I said. Everyone else nodded.
"Good! Then we travel through the west district of this city and access the light bridge to Zeta. Zeta's much smaller than Omega, so making it out of Omega will be the hard part. However, the walk to Rysta's palace in Babylon will be fairly hard… Babylon's the CentraCity of the Heaven-Realm."
"Oh, fun!" I said sarcastically. "Does it look almost the same?"
"I wouldn't know… I've never actually been to the CentraCity," Ryth replied.
"Just lead us there," Rona said. "I'm tired of standing around."
"Okay, okay…" Ryth led us further into the city. After we passed the fountain, the city really started to develop! A multitude of buildings towered above our heads, each made of stone and showing age by displaying plant-life growing on their sides. Many smaller fountains were scattered along the streets for public use: this I knew because some of the citizens used them to fill buckets or containers or even just to drink out of. I scooped some water out of one of the fountains with my hand and took a sip. The water was so clear, clean, and refreshing! There was no such water on Draconia as this…
Many of the spirits watched as we passed by. They must not have been used to the sight of living beings in their Realm. Many were fox spirits, the majority of which were in spirit form. Some were living fox spirits, but they were few. They too must have been Rysta's messengers, running errands around the Heaven-Realm. There were human spirits too, but we were the only living humans around. There were older humans' spirits, middle-aged, and even children… Death seems to come to anyone, regardless of age.
Ryth led us past many buildings, but to me they were all the same. I would imagine that living in the Heaven-Realm would be an eternity of being lost, but I guess if you lived there, you would have eternity to find your way.
In the center of Omega was a round tower by which everything seemed to grow off of. I could see atop this tower a large sphere that spun in place and gleamed in the sunlight. Just staring at it filled me with a powerful emotion of happiness… I felt as though there were no problems in the world… I was snapped out of my trance when someone put their hand on my shoulder.
"Please try not to stare at the sphere… It is what keeps the citizens here happy… If you stare too long at it, you'll never want to leave," Ryth explained. I turned my gaze away from the sphere. Ryth pointed ahead. "You've been fixated on everything for so long, you haven't even realized that we're almost to the light bridge, have you?"
"Huh?" I shook my head. "I guess not… Time does fly by…"
Ryth gathered us at a shorter stone structure by which a transparent light expanded across an unseen ground. To either side of the "bridge," a stone establishment stood and acted as a barrier that must have been used to filter travelers onto the expanse of light. The bridge was large enough that two people could pass each other with plenty of elbow room. Ryth stopped us at the start of the bridge.
"When walked on the bridge, looking down, you will see clouds… And between breaks of clouds, you may see Draconia so far below. Don't worry about falling off the bridge, however… Unseen force fields prevent that act," Ryth explained. He pointed down the length of the bridge. "You can see Zeta from here, and…" Ryth moved his hand to the right and pointed at another distant shadow. "You can see Babylon over there." From the shadow, I could make out a tower that overlooked all other buildings. Surrounding the top of the tower were floating rings, and high above the rest of the city were larger floating rings.
Ryth took us onto the light bridge. Upon setting foot on it, it began to pull me along. "Wow! It's like walking on moving air!" I said.
"Light must stay in constant motion for it to be seen," Ryth said. "The light is strong enough here to pull you along. You can walk, or you can rest."
"Now would be a good time to rest our legs," Keia said and sat down. Ceae and I sat down as well without a complaint. Vegance, Rona, and Ryth remained standing. The light pulled us all along. We had time enough to enjoy the sights of Draconia far below and the passing clouds. Armored angels flew above in the open sky all around us.
"The Angels are Rysta's bodyguards and warriors… They protect the Heaven-Realm," Ryth pointed out.
I nodded. "Rysta sure has life well up here… Amazing cities, personal protectors, a great view of the world below… And her own personal messengers as well! She has more than I ever had back in Draconia…"
"Cryos," Keia said. "You had all of that… The amazing city, personal guards and messengers, and a great view from the turret… I've seen it once or twice before. You and Rysta are not much different…"
"Yes, but… Why am I complaining? I should be thankful for what I've got…"
"Yes, you should," Vegance said. "You could have had a worse life… Be thankful for what you have."
I was silent for a second. "You know, I used to complain about having to take this journey… This 'mission…' But now, I realize, it was better for me… I get to leave and see the world, meet new people, experience life from a different point of view… I am very thankful for what I have, who I have…" I looked around from Keia to Ceae, Vegance, Rona, and Ryth. "While we're asking Rysta about the Light Key… I have to speak to her."
"I'll tell her that you need to put a word in," Ryth told me.
Keia, Ceae, and I all rose to our feet as we approached Zeta. The buildings were still made of stone, but they were smaller and appeared more like houses.
"The reason Zeta is considered smaller than Omega is because it is a residential town, rather than a commercial town," Ryth started. "In the Heaven-Realm, residential towns or cities are where the spirits live… Some fox spirits choose to reside here as well. Commercial towns or cities, usually cities, are more for developing the Heaven-Realm and for use in building new towns and cities… Zeta is residential, so it is small and will not take long to travel through."
I thought for a moment as we approached Zeta. The activities some of the residents participated in almost reminded me of a small suburban town, the type that Draconia lacks today. Everyone appeared happy, but some of their smiles faded upon seeing us "outsiders." I looked to Ryth. "What kind of city does Babylon count as? Residential or commercial?" I asked.
"Neither… It is the capitol, largest city here… People live and produce there… So I guess it's mixed," Ryth replied.
We stepped off of the light bridge and into Zeta. The sidewalks were filled with people, most of which were practicing a form of work that would normally be found in Draconia. "Ryth, what do people do here for eternity?" Keia asked.
"The spirits increase their knowledge by learning new things or even continuing the work they did in their material lives… Thinkers will think and produce new ideas, new solutions to old problems… Inventors make new gadgets from air… They have forever to do as they please."
"They are cursed then," Vegance said, "because they are unable to share their ideas with the world…"
"That's why Rysta has messengers… To send the best ideas down to Draconia," Ryth said. We walked past another large fountain depicting the same woman we had seen in Omega.
"Rysta," I mumbled.
"Huh?" Keia turned to face me. "What are you talking about?"
I pointed at the fountain. "The statue must be Rysta… The same statue was in Omega."
Keia blinked. "You're right… She must really be loved here in the Heaven-Realm…"
"And in Draconia too."
Within very little time, we reached the next light bridge. Again, Ceae, Keia, and I all sat down to rest as the bridge pulled us along. Ryth, Rona, and Vegance remained standing. I never once questioned why they chose to stand: I knew they were all stronger than I was.
This light bridge was shorter than the one from Omega to Zeta. Whereas that one took us an hour or so to travel, this one ended in less than ten minutes. We were all on our feet again as we entered Babylon. The traffic here was much denser than it was in Omega and Zeta combined! People walked and ran in every direction. Angels flew above in the city skies, keeping an eye out just in case. A central tower rose up far above the surrounding buildings. Upon being closer, I could actually see that the rings atop this tower were rotating.
"Rysta's palace heads Babylon, so people needing to see Rysta from neighboring cities need not walk so far to find it," Ryth said.
"It looks tall… Is Rysta's chamber at the top?" I asked.
"Unfortunately, yes," Ryth replied.
"More stairs?" Ceae asked in a whiny voice.
"Actually, no. I insisted she put in an elevator after the first time I had to use the stairs… I actually had to build the elevator myself."
Rona looked to Ryth and nudged him. "If it stops working before we get to the top, I'm teleporting back and using the stairs." Ryth shot Rona a glare before taking us to the palace.
At the entrance to the palace, the guards watched us carefully. When they saw Ryth, they nodded and stepped aside to let us in. The doors slid open themselves and led into a lobby. We gathered inside. I could see an open doorway on the right with stairs leading upwards, and at the back of the room was a round protuberance. Ryth led us to the circular section of wall and pressed a button on the side. A pair of doors slid open to reveal a small room much like the one we had crowded into at Dave's base. Again, the six of us crowded into a small room. Ryth pressed a button and the doors closed. We were shot upwards so fast that I could feel my stomach shoot down into my leg.
When we were at the top, we all stepped out into a large room. Oddly enough, it was larger than the lobby at the base of the tower. There was only one other person in this room: the woman that had been sculpted into the fountains. She had her back turned to us as she watched through the window. Ryth stepped into the middle of the room and dropped to his knee.
"M'Lady Rysta, I am here to seek help," Ryth said.
"Short and to the point… I've always liked you for that, Ryth," Rysta said and turned around. I looked from Rysta to Keia and back again. Rysta was unmistakably the most perfect-looking woman I had ever seen in my life. "And you have brought the Heroes from Draconia as well…"
"It's what you wanted me to do, m'Lady," Ryth said.
"Wait… You knew about us?" I asked.
"Since before you were even brought into this world… It is hard to ignore the coming of a peaceful age… It is part of being omniscient," Rysta said. "You Heroes began to prove yourselves as well when you started to collect the Orb Keys… I had imagined you all would gather here to meet with me at some point in time."
"It's hard to hide anything from m'Lady Rysta," Ryth said.
"Then you should know why we're here," Keia said.
"Of course… You seek the Light Key. I can grant it to you… You have proven that your intentions are pure… However, how you should use that Key is up to you… And the final outcome will be left up to Fate…"
"What?" Rona had finally spoken up. This was actually the first time I had heard him say anything since we had arrived here. "What do you mean by that?"
"I don't control your Destinies or Fates… I only watch things unfold. True, I created both entities to govern life while leaving enough room for free will… But they are beyond my control."
"Rysta, what does the future hold for us?" I asked.
"Depending on your actions, you will either gain a powerful ally, or you will help set in motion the end of the world… You six Heroes determine our future and how the world will be at the end of this war… My only warning is to watch out for Sen… My brother seems to have something planned, and it appears he knows the more likely outcome."
"Rysta, can you expand on what you have told us?" Vegance asked.
"I'm afraid not… If I told you everything that could happen, what good would it be to have free will? You must find out for yourself." Rysta winked at me.
"M'Lady, the Light Key," Ryth said quickly.
"Oh, right!" Rysta held out her hand. There was a swirling of light into her hand, and that light gathered into a sphere. "This is the Light Key you Heroes seek… Take it." Rysta handed it to Ryth. Ryth passed it back to me. I put it away with the others.
"That was a lot easier than I expected," I said.
"You have two more Key to find: Fire and Water. I'm sure you know the locations, right?" Rysta asked.
"Yeah. We planned all of this out before we even started… Ryth had the idea to see you for the Light Key," I explained.
"If you need, I can return you to the Draconian Plains," Rysta offered. "You can go your own way from there." Vegance and Keia nodded in unison. I nodded, and then Rona, then Ceae.
Ryth nodded last. "If you wouldn't mind… But first, how about that Highway in the Sky?"
Rysta laughed gently. "I'll think about it. Everyone, gather here in the middle." We all gathered around Ryth. Rysta lifted her arms into the air and a light surrounded us. "Take care, okay? I'm watching over all of you… One way or another, your actions will bring peace to Draconia… How you act, however, determines how much work will be in it for you." Ryth waved one last time at Rysta. The wall of light blotted out the surrounding world. I felt a rush of wind, and then the light dissipated. We were now standing in the Plains fairly close to the rubble of the stone golem.
Rona was the first to speak. "We should watch what we do from now on… Rysta mentioned more than once that our actions will affect the future… She's warning us against something."
"But what?" I asked. "Keia told me she had a feeling that we were deceived from the beginning… Rysta warns us about Sen… I think we should hurry and finish this battle. I think we should split up…"
"Split up? Split up?" Vegance appeared very upset about the idea. "Why should we? We have to face a very powerful fire demon in the Wastelands… That will require all of our efforts…"
"Yes, but the more we have fighting, the greater the chances of losing someone important… I'm feeling confident that Ryth, Rona, and I can take care of it. Vegance, you wanted to see the ocean… You, Keia, and Ceae can cover that ground. That way, both groups have a fighter, a thinker, and a healer. We can gain the other two Keys at the same time. Is it a plan?" I looked from face to face. Everyone returned a serious look, but there were no objections.
"It's a good idea," Keia said. "Actually, we can save time and energy… I'll lead Vegance and Ceae." She separated herself from us. Ceae went by her side, followed by Vegance. Ryth and Rona joined me.
"Good luck out there," I said. "May Rysta protect you all."
"Rysta keep you guys safe too," Vegance replied. Ryth, Rona, and I started in the direction of the Magmanian Wastelands, while Keia, Vegance, and Ceae headed to the Maringan Shores. I turned to look back once more as we left, a sort of "goodbye" glance to Keia.