Adtraic Verity: Journey For The Truth
Chapter 128

Pointed ruby-red rooftops, dark glossy stone brick walls, beautiful glass doors, and glistening windows, these were just only a few details to describe the architecture of the buildings.

Some places had long and narrow glass bridges, while others had steamy hot, natural spas, taller, reaching up to the glass ceilings suspended above, all built around a plethora of rocks and stone.

This place was a sanctuary, a birth-place for relaxation and sloth.

Street lights dotted everywhere among each corner of the underground area, illuminating each road that was paved by. The sight was then followed by open canals and tall, lush trees paving through enclosed areas like shops and plazas.

The rowboat docked near the fifth shore followed by the sound of several people chattering and walking around the area.

To Aletha, the sight of this place was vastly different in comparison to the other part of the city she saw.

There were more people, mostly adults located here.

(Could that place I have seen before be the residential area of Clearstar city?) Although it made sense for her, she just couldn’t accept it considering she had just arrived.

Not long after, the blue-haired man said farewell to Aletha, pointing her to the town hall which was just two buildings away, next to a segment of tall stone staircases. Of course, Aletha took notice of this, and quickly asked him.

“Wait a minute, didn’t you just say you were going to tell me the history of this city? Why haven’t you told me that yet?!”

The blue-haired man shook his head and hoisted his arm into the air, stepping across the docks and notifying her.

“You will be fine. I’m sure people around here would tell you about the city’s history. If not, just know that I will return to the docks. Because something important is about to happen today.”

“Something important?” Aletha muttered curiously. “What’s that?”

“You’ll see, later on. For now, just go to the town hall!”

While the chatter continued and as Aletha walked across the docks, a nervous smile emerged from her face and she responded.

“Okay, nice to meet you!” Then, an immediate realization dawned on her. “Hey, wait a minute!”

The man turned his head, confused as to what she wanted now.

“What?”

Aletha waved her hand.

“You haven’t even told me your name yet!”

A disbelieved expression floated around the blue-haired man’s face.

“Seriously? Oh my goodness, I was completely caught off-guard about your story, that I forgot to introduce myself. Well, I’ll just make it brief.” He hurriedly made a stance and frantic pose, leaning his arm into the air and waving at Aletha as the boat slowly parted away. “My name is Zahir!”

Aletha’s eyes widened, mumbling in shock. “Zahir? That’s an… interesting name.” Soon before she realized that the boat was gone, Aletha tried to wave back to Zahir.

“Um, well… nice to meet you!

Standing on the boat’s edge, Zahir, the blue-haired man, made a light chuckle and snapped his fingers, shouting.

“Nice to meet you too! I’ll see you soon, when I finally settle on my bearings. Good luck out there, and don’t forget about the big event!”

“I won’t!”

---

Colored window sills were placed everywhere on each building Aletha passed through.

As she was walking, her ears were caught in a storm of sounds.

The Vendor shouts, soldiers hollering, boot stomps, roars of the furnace, clangs of swords, and sandals slapping on brick– all those noises surrounded her. She amplified her pace and raced through the plaza, seeing several people sharing admiring glances at her. Some wore noticeably different clothing like blue and silver uniforms, tall fancy dresses, and so forth.

With her feet caked in the sawdust bestrewn about the city, Aletha tried to dash through the narrow streets. But as she looked for the plaza, Aletha flinched at the shower of compliments and praises given to her.

“Hey gorgeous, come here and I’ll give you a discount!”

A nervous sweat slid down her face.

“N-No thanks.”

And then another, a woman wearing a green robe with gray hair, approached her with a smile.

“Woah, you look amazing!”

“T-Thank you.” Aletha said with a suspicious, crooked smile. (These people are weird.)

This unneeded praise continued on and on as she raced through the gates.

Her eyes broadened in shock, noticing the townhouses, villas, and boarding houses all built up and around the huge expanse of stone.

This place wasn’t just an underground city, it was an entire civilization.

Ropes dangled above her head, the sweet scent of vanilla shrouded all around, and the loud screams of cats echoed over from wall to wall.

As her feet crossed ways along a shimmering glass bridge leading through yet another corridor of townhouses, a group of teenagers, looking to be near their sixteenth year, all approached Aletha spitting out compliments and praises.

“Wow, that’s such a nice shade on your hair!”

“I never thought it was possible to reveal that much skin, you look like a supermodel!”

“Mmm, short but pretty. Nice going, how old are ya?”

Aletha snarled, pressed her lips together into a thin line, narrowing her eyes with a slight head tilt, thinking. (Why do you exist? You know what? These praises… they’re getting out of hand. I need to find a way to get out of here.)

Without replying, Aletha sneered at the individuals, barged through the group of teenagers, ignored their frustrated screams, and raced through the gates, toward the other, more tamer part of the city.

. . .

It was clear to Aletha that this area of Clearstar was a lot more different and energetic. She almost regretted the fact that she didn’t stay within that other portion of the city. But as she approached the “relaxation” part of the city, yet again, while she crossed through the hallway of natural spas, Aletha got sprinkled with praises.

“I like your hair! Do you think you have time to talk?”

“You look like a goddess!”

“Where are you from?”

Aletha’s face turned red shortly after; not out of embarrassment or fluster, but from anger and irritation. She rolled her eyes and made a long-suffering-sigh, answering.

“Why do you want to know?! I’m just a stranger. Grah, if you get closer to me, I will sock your face off!”

A prideful and confident smirk emerged from the smug, blonde-haired man.

“Oh, please. Like you’re going to do anything useful.”

(That’s it, I’m done.) Aletha thought as her eyes stared at the man with irritation.

Looking up, she clenched her fists and gritted her teeth, pushing the man and fleeting away, shouting.

“Stop it, stop it, STOP IT! Gaa, I can’t take this anymore!” (Why in the world are they even praising me?! My appearance isn’t that attractive. Goodness.)

This was all too overwhelming for her, to the point she almost went insane. There was one reason why she came here, to find Rinnea and grab the necklace. But instead of following that pattern, all she managed to do was find herself inside a sanctuary with crazy people.

When she ran, a thought came from her.

(Honestly, I kind of like the older place. I’m okay with children, but full-grown adults, gah!)

Suddenly,

“Woah there, where do you think you’re going in such a rush?”

She bumped into a girl who had her crimson hair tied up into a ponytail, wearing a bright violet skirt and a pink crop top kimono.

Immediately, Aletha bowed down and apologized with a quirky tone.

“Sorry sorry, I was in a rush.”

As the crimson-haired girl slowly rubbed her forehead, looking back and forth to find who bumped into her, a loud masculine sound came out from Aletha’s right.

“Wait a second, Aletha? How did YOU get here?”

Beneath the cold glare of the desolate cavern, arose another figure, slightly taller, having short dark brown hair, dark, caramel-colored skin, and cold emerald eyes.

Aletha, rushed and panicked, screamed back at the stranger.

“I should ask YOU that!”

After she screamed at the man, Aletha tilted her head back to the girl and shouted.

“Do I know you?”

The crimson-haired girl permitted herself a delicate smile, crossed her arms, and eyed Aletha with her warm ruby-red eyes. Then, in just a short second, the crimson-haired girl swiftly kicked her legs up like a kangaroo, swung her arms, and erupted in joy.

“Oh… my… goodness! Are you that white-haired girl we met all the way back in that hotel a few days ago?!”

Aletha raised an eyebrow, answering as the girl forced her into an alleyway.

“Um… yeah…”

A relieved expression floated on the girl’s face, pushing her ruby hair to the side and expressing.

“You are?! That’s wonderful. So, what have you been up to?! You haven’t forgotten my name, haven’t you?”

Shortly afterward, explanations from Aletha bandied about from mouth to mouth.

. . .

(Twenty-Minutes of Explaining Later…)

“Oh, so that’s why you got those reactions! Well, that makes sense. I mean, you did save a nation, and not only that, you have white hair, the rarest color in a trait in this world.”

Aletha nodded her head attentively, then immediately switched topics, not giving a single care for Alai’s sentence.

“Why did you react like that?”

“It’s because I’m hyper. That’s how I usually act.” Alai snickered.

“Oh, really?” (Well, this is going to be a pain.) Aletha thought as she looked over to the crystal canals streaming across waterfalls covered in fogged glass. She looked back at the green-eyed man and asked.

“So, what about you… Zeru? How did you, Alai, and Brunella all get here into this underground place?”

Zeru replied casually.

“Most of us came here from the tornado. We all crashed through the glass ceiling and after that, we arrived here.”

“Hmm, so you say ‘most’ of us came from there? Where are the rest?”

Alai excitedly pointed at the plaza not too far off in the distance, shrouded in individuals, “Over there! There are a LOT of familiar faces in that area!”

He added, fondling with some of the strings dangling from the balconies above.

“Yeah, but some of them also left Linuxinia toward their home nations, since they have something else better to do.”

Aletha raised an eyebrow in curiosity, “And who were they?”

“There’s no time to explain, something important is happening right now. Isa, and Kali are ready to make their announcement.”

She quickly skidded backward in shock, “What?! Isa and Kali? Ready to make an announcement? It’s not even been half a day and they are already in this sort of situation?!”

Alai lightly giggled and covered her mouth, murmuring with a smug smile, crossing her arms.

“Hee hee. I guess Aletha forgot that they are the Queens of Linuxinia. It’s no surprise they would be given praise. Anyways, if you really want to know what’s happening, then just go over there where they are at

“Ohhh, then hurry up! I need to tell them something!”

. . .

Not long after that, Aletha rushed the others through the long narrow streets, dodging offers of spa-memberships all around an area closely-related to certain activities, trying to find where Kali was.

Fortunately for her though, she made it past the steaming-wonderland, finally passing through another stairway before finally meeting at the center block, which was suspended by gigantic winding roots.

As she was averting through offers all around, Zeru informed Aletha.

“See that large root above the ceiling? That’s the root that sustains a huge segment of the magic in Linuxinia. Here in this nation, Happiness is the greatest power.”

(Happiness, the greatest power? Isn’t that supposed to be a natural emotion? Why does it have any significance to the magic in this game?)

Confused, Aletha tilted her head to Zeru with narrowed eyes, shrugging and responding.

“Happiness? How does that work?”

Zeru, having high knowledge of everything, lifted his chin and circled his shoulder, tucking his thumbs in his waistcoat and answering with a stern tone.

“In the world of Gincad, emotions are the highest of power. Each nation has a corresponding emotion, all having varying capabilities and assets. For example, some positive emotions like Happiness and Love run bright, heal, and replenish soil, while the negative and neutral emotions have other cryptic and mysterious capabilities that may even ruin Weakness as a whole, in exchange for b***d or a sacrifice.” He turned over to the green and cyan stream of particles encircling the root, nudging Aletha to look as well, adding as he continued on and on.

“Happiness on the other hand, within the nation of Linuxinia, can sometimes be used more as a resource than as an emotion. It is not only designated for humans, but the land itself. If the soil ‘feels’ happy, then by change it would evolve to an even greater beauty. If it is caressed well by humans, the humans themselves would be granted happiness.”

Aletha looked down on the ground, stumped about this discovery, replying.

“Well, that seems sad. Because, if happiness is just considered a resource, then how would anyone know if one is truly happy?”

“The only way to know someone is truly happy is by scrutinizing not only the happiness outside of a person, but inside as well. You can notice it, if a green luminance is attached to their heart. There is still so much to explain, but it seems we’re running out of time.”

Alai, impatient about everything, crossed her arms and released a dragged-on sigh, tapping Aletha’s shoulder and mumbling.

“Ugh, come on! Stop standing around and talking, let’s go! We can explain later!”

“Okay okay.”

. . .

As they departed, Aletha looked back at the root, then to Zeru, mumbling to herself as Alai led them out of the area.

“Gosh, this place is a lot more mysterious than I once thought. I was REALLY holding my temptations on not going to those spas. Agh, that’s the perfect place to relax, and I can’t even have that!”‘

Suddenly, a voice came out.

“Stop your complaining, and get over it little rabbit!”

Little Rabbit.

That term, it could only mean one thing.

Aletha turned to where the voice came from, and was shocked to see a girl with long lavender hair and two heterozygous eyes approaching her. Zeru and Alai backed up, having no interest in her.

But Aletha on the other hand, kindly welcomed the girl as footsteps talked about.

“Greetings! Who are you again?”

A broad expression of disgust and boredom floated in the petite girl’s face. She immediately clutched Aletha’s neck and messed with her hair, fondling the soft white bristles like what someone would pet an animal.

Then, she pushed her away and snarled, expressing selfishness and pride in her high-pitched voice.

“Grr, even your hair reminds me of the fur on those hares back in Desita. These little rabbits are intruding upon my space. Let it be, Jesica! You probably remembered me in that carriage, right? Well, I followed the power of MY vision and decided to follow the others into this… relative sanctuary for rabbits like you.”

This would be the moment where Asahi would intrude upon Jesica’s act, but without him, Aletha was forced to submit to Jesica’s outrageous personality. And so, with carelessness, Aletha pushed Jesica over and led Zeru and Alai down the stairs, toward a settlement of what looked like a whole hallway of markets. Jesica’s screams accompanied her across her descent, going her own way to chase Aletha down the block until they reached…

“Why are there… so many people here?”

… a huge block surrounded by buildings and a sea of individuals. As they pushed through the crowd, Jesica explained.

“Stop acting ignorant, little rabbit. The Queen of Linuxinia is going to make another announcement!”

Aletha raised an eyebrow at the lavender-haired girl.

“You mean… Isa, right? Why does she have to make an announcement? Is there something I’m not getting across? Were we NOT just in a crash site a few hours ago?”

With all of these problems stirred together, Zeru got straight to the point, shaking his head and crossing his arms as chatter bounced about.

“See for yourself.”