AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I yelped, my jaw dropping. The beast spoke as clear as day. I blinked several times before my brain could process what was happening.
“Uhm what! They can talk?”
“Just because your beasts are unintelligent and mute, doesn’t mean the rest of us are,” the Yulnicorn sneered. It jerked, jolting my body. I cried out and Kiranon laughed.
“Xoretha, be nice.”
The Yulnicorn, Xoretha, neighed again. “I am being nice.”
I hushed, wholly perplexed.
As we rode, the clouds began getting to me. The scenery hadn’t changed. We made our way up, up, up the ramp. Riding nearly parallel with it, it was a wonder I didn’t tip out of the chariot and fall to my death. How much further until we reached the blasted tower? Who in their right mind thought to build such a stupendous structure, anyway? Why was a Sky Ladder needed to connect the two? And how in all the skies did they get this angel up there in the first place?
“Keep asking yourself questions you have no answer to and your head will explode, Un’Sèlie.”
“Okay, so answer some of them. This Sky Ladder. Where did it really come from?”
Kiranon was quiet for so long I didn’t think he would answer. Eventually, he conceded.
“There are many artifacts among angels that come with a mystery greater than our existence. However, as for the Sky Ladders, this isn’t the only one. There are several. They come into being through the planting of beans. Mist beans, to be exact. We have access to scores of them in our fields. Plant a bean, water it, and watch it sprout a Sky Ladder that leads into the heavens.”
Beans. Sky Ladders from beans.
Bullrot.
“Sure.”
Kiranon dipped his head. “You don’t believe me.”
“I think it’s all far-fetched. Marvels being birthed from beans.”
“I tell the truth, faeretheth.”
He spoke with such a finite edge to his voice. I conceded to believe him. While the angels could lie, they weren’t like us fae. They often chose the truth because lies weren’t worth the energy it took to keep up with them. We fae spoke the truth, too… in halves. We enjoyed playing games, leaving certain information out, and making everyone else guess for the full truth. Angels didn’t bother with such frivolity, at least not with us. I didn’t see a reason for Kiranon to lie. So if Sky Ladders really came from beans…
“What else can the beans produce?”
“Those secrets belong to Avari.”
I screwed my mouth shut, unwilling to choke on my envy. What I wouldn’t give to visit Avari at least once. Kiranon kept a harsh pace. Eventually, the suns against our sky began beating down on us. All three beamed with flecks of gold, scarlet, and shimmers of ivory. Sweat beat at my temples. Fidgeting, I lifted my hands to fan myself.
“How much longer?” I murmured.
My back ached. My knees throbbed. I was starving. I needed off this infernal chariot, immediately.
“We’re here.”
Without warning, Kiranon steered the chariot after Xoretha and her companions. He jerked their bodies from going directly upward to now trotting across. Their hooves clopped the ground as we left the ramp of the Sky Ladder which had returned to rungs. Gods. Who’d be desperate enough to climb the ladder?
I shuddered. Kiranon yanked me off the chariot and put me on the ground. I crumpled to the floor, having lost my footing. My hands were clammy. The world spun. I tried standing to my feet, but I couldn’t keep my balance. The moment I stood, my knees buckled again. The cloudy floor felt like walking across pillows. It did nothing to help my equilibrium.
“Can she not stand?”
“It always takes them a moment before they collect themselves.”
Several snorts responded.
My inability to stand right was embarrassing, but there was nothing I could do about it. The world felt straight and sideways all at the same time. My stomach lurched. I gulped down several deep breaths of the crisp air. It helped enough for me to stand. I looked around and found nothing of existence besides the massive tower and this world of cloud around it. I was immediately struck by the isolation of it all. This tower looked like paradise, but I knew without even going inside, it was the worst prison of all.
