Hallowed Souls

Wren looked down at the water, hundreds of feet below, and tried to glimpse the bottom of the airship. She had never been on one before or even been close to one, so her imagination ran wild at the idea that a ship large enough to carry hundreds of people could be flying through the cloudy skies. It was early in the morning, and the sun had just risen high enough to see the lack of land around her; the two moons, Seladon and Mirus, were moving South and West, respectively, towards the horizon, where she would not see them again until nightfall.

The expanse of water around her frightened her slightly, in a cautious way that one would feel in such a new situation, but her excitement overrode most of her fears. She tried to catch small details of the ship, hoping to see the enormous stones glowing a dull green as their magic kept them floating lazily. The wind rushed behind them, pushing them forward to a land she had never seen.

All around, she could hear the crew of The Nightwish moving around as Captain Sulzon and his first mate, Agni, shouted orders occasionally. The airship rocked slightly as the pilot turned the sails slightly using the ship wheel and adjusted their direction sometimes. Standing beside her, relaxing against the wooden railing and watching those on the ship, was her new acquaintance, Nazira.

She had met Nazira only a month ago, during the Steel Defenders Championship back in Lunaris. They had fought one by one, moving up the bracket of various fighters and mages, making it to the top sixteen, where they were put in teams of four to fight against ferocious monsters. While their two teammates, unfortunately, passed away during the final fight, the two of them managed to slay a chimera and found themselves to be the winners.

There was little doubt in her mind that that would be the end of it, though. As soon as they were declared the champions, they were rushed to a chamber room, where they were told they had two options. Nazira and Wren could take the ten-thousand gold and leave or take on a quest, where the wealth would be presented ten-fold. Nazira accepted immediately, and after consideration, Wren did as well.

Looking at her new partner, she focused on the various features and compared them to hers. Nazira was just under six feet in height, with pale skin and platinum blonde hair that fell below her shoulders when she let it down. Her eyes were the same color of blue as Wren’s, and they both carried the same build, lean with muscle from years of diet and exercise. She wore chainmail over her tunic, which had a symbol of a goddess that Wren had thought was forgotten about long ago. On her hips, she carried a dagger and a whip. A leather wrap had been made at one point to wrap around her body and hold her warhammer on her back comfortably, moving very little as Nazira adjusted herself from one arm to the other, heavily leaning on the railing. While Wren knew that she was older than Nazira, her expression showed that they had been through the same amount of pain in their past, even if they were in different forms.

Wren was slightly envious of her, knowing that her features hid her from the world if needed. She was not so lucky. Wren was an inch or so shorter than her counterpart but would always be noticed first, even though she wore simple leathers and a cloak to try and hide her differences. Unfortunately, her long, curling, semideus horns would not allow that, as well as her blue hair and fair skin. While most semidi she had known about had reddish skin tones, she was even considered different among her race for being so close to a human’s.

Either way, being mixed on the ship with various races made it easy to forget her past, and she found herself blending in comfortably with the giants, tigri, ki’askr, and more that made up The Nightwish crew. Nazira was the only thing that made it hard to blend into her surroundings. Wren learned from an early age that speaking should always have importance, but it was clear that this wasn’t taught to everyone as Nazira shouted over to the nearest person she could see, asking questions.

“Excuse me! How much longer are we gonna be on this ship?” She yelled out over the gusts of deafening wind.

About ten feet away from her, a figure turned around to her with a shocked expression as if shaken out of deep thought. The tigris’ fur shifted with the wind, with colors of brown and orange, and with a cat-like face, walked over to them.

“What?” Spark hollered back, holding his hand up to his ear.

“I said, how much longer until we get off this boat?” Nazira asked again.

“Oh! Just a few more hours, probably. Captain Sulzon mentioned this morning that we should see the island at any point this afternoon.”

As if waiting for Nazira to ask, Wren could hear the bell in the crow’s nest ring out. They moved towards the bow of the ship and looked in front of them. At the horizon’s edge, she could start to make out a dot, which she assumed was Tamvir Skypeak.

“It still looks miles away!” Nazira sighed, slumping into the railing.

“It seems to me that patience is not part of your oath, paladin.” Wren quipped.

Nazira rolled her eyes, then stared off at the speck of land in the distance.

“Do you know much about this place?” She asked.

“Not much, to be honest.”

“I hear it’s the only one left, right?”

“I think so.” Wren closed her eyes and tried to remember what she had read about it.

Wren could see the memory in her mind. She sat under a grove of trees and could almost smell the parchment as if it was right in front of her again. Turning the pages one by one, she spoke aloud as if reading from it for Nazira.

“Initially, Odin and his brothers, Vili and Ve, fought a mighty jötnar named Ymir. After, they laid his body amongst the vast nothingness of the 9 Realms and started to create the realm of Midgard. During the battle, their father, Borr, passed away at the hands of a dragon. Wanting to give him a proper funeral for his legacy, they placed his body in The Sea of Falling Stars. His body decayed, but when the realm made use of his body, the skeletal remains of Borr rose out of the water, along with four islands floating nearby, and they all began to rise into the sky. In time, the cloud and storm giants made their homes away from Jötunheim as allies of Midgard and the Aesir of Asgard, making cities of white stone and ivory on the floating islands.

Tragedy struck the first floating city after the death of their leader. Within a month of his passing, the island’s magic faded, and they plummeted to their death in the water below. The three leaders met and decided on a new plan. When the next one died, their body would be placed on Borr’s remains, symbolizing that storm giants do not sink but rise into the sky. They found that this was the right choice when the next leader passed. They moved his body to Borr’s remains, and the city did not fall.

While the leaders and their people did their best to appease their newfound tradition, it wasn’t always capable. One lost to war and another to an accident involving an island edge that eroded and cracked away. Only one floating city is left today to tell the stories and keep the traditions of the cloud and storm giants.”

Wren opened her eyes and found Nazira staring at her intently.

“What?”

“You said you didn’t know much, but that was a lot!” Nazira exclaimed.

“Just what I’ve read. I don’t even know how much of it is true and what parts are just myths.” Wren protested.

“Well, either way, it was more than I knew. I just know that cloud and storm giants are all over the place now. I guess a lot of them didn’t want to risk tradition. It’s also supposed to be huge!” Nazira brought her arms up to her sides and stretched them as far as she could, trying to capture the enormity of the floating island they were heading towards.

“It’s also beautiful.” A low voice came from behind them.

Turning around, Wren and Nazira looked at the friendly giant before them. Almost double their height, Captain Sulzon was an older giant with gray skin, white hair, and a beard. His hazel eyes peered down at the two, smiling with an almost complete set of teeth.

“Tamvir Skypeak has no equal in beauty.” He stated matter-of-factly.

“How long has it been since you’ve been back, Captain?” Nazira asked him.

“Oh… it’s been about a year now.” He replied, scratching his head as he tried to remember.

“Anything we should know about the area or people there?” Wren asked curiously.

“They’re a proud bunch of people.” He answered. “They take themselves seriously. They’re also pretty blunt, so don’t take much mind to when they say things.”

Thanks, Captain.” Nazira replied.

She smiled, and Wren turned back to watch the city come into view. Tamvir Skypeak floated roughly three miles above The Sea of Falling Stars. As their view of it grew, Nazira and Wren could see why they were proud. It was stunning. While the domed bottom of the city was held with tree roots like a basket, the top was lush with greenery. There were no roads, but there were areas where plant life didn’t grow as quickly due to carts and walkways. They could see the dark green of the grass and trees, along with the many colors of blossoms that rose towards the sun in the Spring temperature.

The crew of The Nightwish worked quickly, slowing the ship’s speed to a crawl, docking into a stone platform on the port side. Giants at the dock moved quickly to catch anchors dropped by the crew and started tying them to pillars and large steel bars. Within minutes, they began to disembark.

Nazira and Wren waited for others to leave the ship and were met with Sumati. She had orcish features, but her tusks were smaller. She was closer to their height, like those with half heritage, the Gishari. Sumati had piloted the ship for most of the trip, and Wren could see the hard calluses on her hands from moving such a large wooden wheel for what she assumed years. Her hair was black and braided so that large locks came down to her back, adorned with thick rings and gems.

Nazira was looking into the city, her eyes squinting in the afternoon sun. Now in the city, it was hard to see its entirety. Looking for something, she turned to Wren.

“So, who are we supposed to be meeting?”

Wren pulled the scroll from her satchel. It was given to them when they finished the tournament, and they decided to leave Olissa for Tamvir Skypeak. While she was used to seeing parchment written on with black ink, this was written in blue ink and sparkled in the sunlight as if starlight had been placed inside a bottle and used.

“It says that we’re to collect our winnings or more at the Storm Citadel,” Wren explained as she read the paper. “Where do you think that is?”

“I imagine it’ll be one of the larger buildings up there.” Nazira pointed.

Tamvir Skypeak’s edge reminded Wren of the base of a mountain. As she looked inward, she could see it rising in the middle, higher and higher, until it peaked with multiple buildings sitting at its top. They started their trek upward, following the grassy pathway.

Each building was suitably sized for giants, with each story at least twelve feet tall before moving to the next. They were made of white marble, with ivory carvings adorning various places and wooden structures built around them, such as patios, awnings, doorways, and windows. The buildings towards the peak were different. They were made of white basalt stones, with enormous stained-glass windows that stretched over fifteen feet in height and eight feet wide. The closest one of them, a large bell, was affixed to the belfry. Wren realized that each building had an ivory slab over their doorway, with carving that read a language she didn’t know. She pointed over to one as they walked.

“Do you understand the language?”

“Uh… Yeah. It says, ‘The Brimstone Monarch.’ I wonder what that is?”

They didn’t have to wait long for an answer, for as they looked through the window as they passed, they could see tables where giants sat to eat and drink. Men, women, and children picked food up from massive plates and drank from mugs the size of pitchers.

“Well, it looks like somewhere we should go after this,” Nazira stated.

“I agree. It would be nice to try something new.” Wren replied.

While Wren was starting to get used to the large buildings, especially from being in cities many times recently, it was the people that she found difficult to grow accustomed to. The giants were anywhere from eight to twelve feet, and even the children were as tall or taller as her. They had to move carefully, making sure not to get kicked or stepped on accidentally, as they were easily the shortest people in the area, especially as they moved further from the docks. They moved through their city, barefoot and in simple leathers and cloth. It seemed devoid of any authoritative structure at a glance, with no guards in uniform. Wren knew that giants were of many types, varying in social status and demeanor. She could tell that many of the giants here were kind, waving, and smiling when they looked down to see them and seemed peaceful and content with just living their lives.

Carefully, they trekked higher up the city, finally reaching the top and seeing that the pathway only took them to the front of one building. To the left and right, the land had given way some time ago, making this the entrance to the peak before being able to see further into the other buildings. They stepped up to the door, guarded by two giants in chain mail, carrying spears almost double Wren’s height. It made sense to her that a floating city probably didn’t see battle often, but the size and stature of the weapons were still functional, even if they were primarily for decorum. Wren pulled the letter back out and held it up to the guard on the left.

“Hello. We were told to meet here at the Storm Citadel?”

The guard took the letter. He brought it close to his face, taking a moment to read over it. Once satisfied, he showed it to his partner.

“It has the seal of Uvag.” The second guard stated. “Our Chieftain welcomes you. Please step inside.”

The first guard handed Wren the paper, and she quickly tucked it back into her bag. The two guards turned and unlocked the door, using keys they carried around their necks on chains the size of Wren’s forearm in thickness. They pushed the double doors open with a few clicks and bowed slightly as Nazira and Wren stepped inside.