(XIV) Tetrakyts

Jackson had read this warning thousands of times in the last decade:

"The Guardians are NOT to be trusted."

God's Tower was split into 100 floors, and a guardian oversaw each set of ten levels. The ten Guardians differed from one another and maintained the order and progress of the Climbers within the Tower.

In the beginning, Climbers would naively hang on to every word uttered by the Guardians, resulting in a massive loss of life. This was also true for the newbies who arrived without the proper caution given by more veteran Climbers.

Once a Climber reached the last floor of their domain, they would be challenged to break through to the next floor. Whenever a challenge was completed, the floors under the realm of the Guardian would go silent for 24 hours as they were reset to allow Climbers the chance to continue.

This procedure allowed for the creation of Guilds to groom future Climbers by creating specific guidelines for newbies to quickly obtain the necessary power needed to replenish lost ranks from the higher floors.

Jackson closed the journal, returning it to his satchel as he stared at the portal. He felt anxious as he watched the energy vortex; he placed his hand on his chest and took a deep breath, noticing the objects in his pocket.

He reached into his jacket, retrieving the pouch, box, and scroll. He returned the scroll and bag to his pocket as he removed the ribbon, and opened the box. Inside was a tiny silver earring hoop. Seated in the lid was a small note that said, "Wear Me!"

He attached the earring to his left ear, grabbing the pouch. He opened the tiny sack into his palm as a meteorite the size of a golf ball rolled into it.

The meteorite had a shiny, luminous center with sharp, rough, coarse rocks clutching it like a talon. It gave off a dull green light.

Jackson opened the scroll and read Tara's letter, and his eyes widened in shock.

***

On the other side of Terra, on a large continent isolated by oceans with a singular tower floating above the massive city of Freywatch. The skeleton of the metropolis on which Freywatch was built was primarily untouched during the event known as "The Arrival" by survivors, as most of the beasts that came through were winged creatures.

Housing the most citizens and becoming the central hub for humanity after the fall, it was the largest city on Terra. The Top Ten Guilds controlled most of, if not everything, that happened within God's Tower. These Guilds were run by the Top 10 Climbers, known as the Tetrakyts, masters of one of the Ten Prime Elements.

Each of the Tetrakyts raised its headquarters here, and before long, the city was affectionately nicknamed The City of Guilds. Freywatch becoming the hub for Guilds attracted many legitimate and illegal opportunities.

A tall, young man wearing a long red coat with black pauldrons on each shoulder stood against a wall with his arms crossed over his chest, waiting outside a large double door.

His bright orange eyes sternly gazed at the dark mahogany doors in silence until a woman in a skirted suit opened the door and bowed, "They are ready for you now, Lexx."

He leaned forward, his sword rustling against his black pants as he noisily walked into the massive conference room. A large table ran down the room's length, with ten chairs spaced evenly around it.

In nine of the ten chairs sat the currently ranked first through ninth Climbers, representing their guilds. Lexx confidently strode through the room, grabbing the back of the empty seat and taking his place.

An elderly bald man with a long white bearded goatee and simple black clothing raised his arms into the air, "Welcome, Lexx Seifer, the new Guild Master of Flaming Dawn!"

"Thank you, Master Zayin! I will work hard to maintain the image of Tetrakyts!" Lexx said with a slight bow.

"Barely out of your freshmen year and already in the Top Ten..? You're hardly out of diapers! Zayin! He should not be here!" An older, bearded man with green hair and brown eyes slammed his palm against the table.

"Oh, Viscardi, don't be like that! He beat Xix fair and square for his position!" A colorful man who looked more like a jester than a Climber said, leaning back and kicking his feet up on the table.

"ENOUGH!" Zayin boomed, tapping the ground with a plain wooden cane, creating a powerful shockwave that shook the entire room. He scanned the room, looking at each individual.

"You all know why we are here! Do not for an instant think that someone sitting in this room does not deserve to be here!" He continued as everyone looked at their laps.

Zayin spoke again, opening his arm to a woman with long white hair matching her long, plated dress, "Imperia Snow, explain why you have called for us so urgently."

"My oldest, Veronika, recently came of age and completed her assessment in Duskgate." Imperia said, brushing a hair braid behind her ear, "She ran into an arrogant boy who disrespected her. She decided to stick around to play with him but was embarrassed when he scored better than her. She then reveals his rating, and he stated he wasn't with any guilds and didn't plan on joining any."

"Oho! I heard about this! I thought it was just a rumor! Is he really SSS?" The jester leaned forward, resting his technicolored elbows against the table and his hands holding his chin.

"It is..." Imperia replied, closing her eyes as the room fell silent as the other Guild Masters began plotting how they could wrangle such a big prize for their own personal gain.

"Viscardi, send the boy a message. You have men in the lower levels, no?" Zayin asked, breaking the silence.

"My men recently cleared the First Trial..." Viscardi replied, stroking his beard casually, "The task should fall to Lexx."

"Agreed!" A woman with blue hair and white eyes added, "He may have defeated Xix, but he has not proven his capabilities to us!"

"Hmmm..." Zayin grunted, stroking his beard. After a long silence, he nodded, "So be it! Lexx, it will fall to you to defang this young lion before he can bare his teeth at us."

"Leave it to me!" Lexx said, quickly departing the room, slamming the door behind him as cracks formed in the walls around the frame, much to the joy of the jester, who broke into laughter.