The Heavenly Host

Elrose chuckled as he shut his door and made the necessary gestures to magically lock it. “So, we are off to Trevin’s lab.” He grabbed the handle on his trunk and rotated it so he could pull it behind him, then gestured forward for the others to lead the way.

“Isn’t fierdset an odd time to start a journey?” Jenn asked.

Maelen laughed. “I would say so, but Trevin has her reasons. We are heading to the Grove and from what I’ve read, getting in and out of that place is non-trivial.”

“Other than Trevin, of course, Trisfelt is the only person I know of who has been there,” Elrose remarked as they walked down the hall.

“The surrounding mountains are a bit overwhelming,” Gastropé stated.

“Yes,” Elrose noted, “you’re from Turelane, which is adjacent to the Grove.”

“Yes, I’m from Freelane. I studied at Master al Bastante’s Academy, which is located about seventy leagues east and south of Freelane, nearly up against the mountain ranges. The outer range is about the same height as the mountains around Freehold, so about half a league in height; the next range in, which you can easily see at a distance, is probably twice that, and the innermost ranges are said to be another two to three times as high.”

“What? Are you saying there are mountains that are two or three leagues high?” Jenn asked incredulously.

“And roughly fifteen leagues wide at their base, if you could measure such a thing.” Gastropé nodded in agreement. “According to our school’s Geomancer. However, that is taking in the rapid rise in overall altitude; ground level would be a third to half of a league to start with there. So they are only going maybe two leagues higher than whatever you want to call ground.”

Maelen looked at him askance. “That’s a rather incredible height. I know that they are said to be unimaginably tall, but a 48,000-foot-tall mountain seems a bit more than unbelievable. I’m not sure there is enough air at the height to breathe.”

“There would be air at that height, but it would be quite thin,” Elrose stated. He was also a Master of Enchantment, so was quite familiar with airflow and density.

“According to the masters at my school, only the aetós can breathe at that altitude, and even they have trouble and can’t exert themselves too much,” Gastropé said.

“So, you are saying the Grove is basically surrounded by an impenetrable range of mountains?”

“I don’t know if your young and handsome friend is saying that, but I will,” Trevin D’Vils said, appearing from a side corridor leading into the foyer they had just entered. This foyer let onto a spiral ramp leading up and down, rather than the more traditional spiral staircase. The ramp was built for hauling furniture and equipment between the various suites and the labs. Elrose had quietly directed them this way to use the ramp to get down to the labs due to his large-wheeled trunk.

Jenn noted that the councilor was once again seriously underdressed in blousy sheer silk pants that went only halfway down her calves, and a vest made out of the same material that left way too much cleavage and midriff exposed for her seriously advanced age. She was also wearing an insane amount of jewelry: several diamond necklaces, bracelets, armbands, ankle rings, toe rings and finger rings. Jenn shook her head.

Elrose and Maelen nodded in respect to the enchantress, as did Gastropé. “The mountains are very high, higher than Oorstemoth’s ships can sail, in fact. Of course, mountains are peaks, so there are gaps and valleys, but the mountains are concentric and those valleys have extremely complex and dangerous currents. Only the aetós know them, and they patrol them diligently.”

“So how did the first residents ever make their way in?” Gastropé asked curiously.

“Hmm,” Trevin murmured, apparently really seeing Gastropé for the first time. She walked up very close to him and ran her right hand gently down his left bicep and forearm. “A fellow Turelanean, and as I mentioned, such a strong, young, handsome one. This trip is suddenly looking much more interesting.” Trevin smiled very brightly and more than a little disquietingly. Gastropé coughed uncomfortably.

Trevin chuckled and spun away, moving slightly apart again. “When the first residents of the Grove arrived, the mountain ranges were a bit more normal-sized. Let’s just say they’ve been fortified over the last several thousand years by the residents.” She smiled back at them as she started down the spiral ramp. “Our residents are quite good at erecting things.” She chuckled.

“Several thousand years?” Maelen asked. “How long has the Grove been there, as we know it today?”

Trevin shrugged. “A very, very long time, longer than even I’ve been alive.” She glanced sharply at Jenn for some reason. Jenn could not help but blush, feeling guilty about her internal fashion commentary despite the fact that there was no way the enchantress could know what she’d been thinking.