The City Of Wonders

Soft shuffling can be heard, as a silhouette of a tall, sturdy man is changing clothes, hidden beside a curtain. He pricks his ears, as the main door is heard being shut quietly, evidently as a means of conveying apology. Dull this are heard as the being approaches the room.

"Boy, I want to apologise for what has happened." Edward begins his apology, " I... wanted to further stimulate you, to unleash your full potential. I needed you to unleash all your emotions, your anger, towards me, for it is the only way to push you to your complete potential." A hand is ruffles through his hair, eyes shifting to one side, expressing regret.

A brief interlude passes by, increasing the tension of the room. When it seemed this silence would persist, a rough voice, laden with silent grief, spoke. "I had always treated you with respect and love, old man, yet it seems that I was mistaken. Even though you were there when I was all alone, you will never be my parents."

The old man, twinging in pain, tried to apologise once again, "Look, as I've said, I'm sorry for what I've said. I kno-" An enraged Jake turns around, and starts berating back "Say all the sorrys you want, I won't speak to you again!"

With a smash, Jake slams the main door shut, and storms back home. Edward looks back at the angry figure, wistfully murmuring "You should cherish these moments as much as possible, for these will remain the fondest of memories when you look back. Please, never lose your humanity, regardless what may await you in the future." An old, stooped figure shuffles back into the shop, displaying fatigue and weariness.

"Unbelievable, who does he think he his, my grandfather? I swear, I shall never go back to him, ever again! This is the last straw, I swear!" Huffing, Jake dumps his sweaty, grimy clothes into the washing machine, and starts it. While he is taking a nice, hot shower, messages keep pinging in his phone, which remains silent except for the blinking screen.

Only after a sudden ring does he pick up the phone "Bro, where you at? I've been messaging you for quite some time, you coming or not?" Jake, in exasperation, just said "I'm coming right now. I just showered, so give me half an hour, and we'll meet at the Trinasdt station. I know you've been bugging me about seeing the latest gun-ade, but you do know that it's only for exhibition, right?" Jake huffs in annoyance, before heading out, and meeting with the speaker, who is revealed to be Grud.

Throughout the train journey, Jake kept on ruminating on his harsh words he had said to old man Edward, feeling what he had done might have broken the old man's heart. At the though of this, his heart felt heavier and heavier at each passing moment.

Just as he was about to have a panic attack, Grud called out to him, "Hey, we're here."

A huge city fortress is laid out before their eyes. Tall buildings spiral into the sky, fading into the twilight. Rainbows refract from the multi-layered glass panels inlaid in the exterior. Huge trains, levitating on phantom rails, can be seen winding between and through the bustling city, with the only evidence of their existence being glyphs of magic supporting their tracks. People can be seen shuttling up, down and sideways, as they travel to their destinations, where it be the skies themselves, or the bottom of the city.

But what struck them the most was the other buildings that were entrapped between the modern structures.

Tall, spindly towers are seen dotted around, from where mages can be seen coming and going through, each sporting their respective clans, colleges or affiliations. Short, wide and lively dojos can be seen from afar, especially with the large black mass moving in perfect harmony in the center of the dojo, each with their respective martial arts. Loud roars can be heard emanating from what appears to be stadiums, their unusual architectural designs making them quite the visual spectacle.

The centerpiece of the whole city though, are the various structures where the other races live. From the large mega trees where the Elves are seen climbing across, to the large floating mountains where the dwarfs reside. The demonic area, though not seen with the large shadow veil, can be felt, as the demon folk who scurry across the area always seem to undulating the curtain, especially when the larger ones pass through. However, the grandest of them all were the sky palaces where the feathered folk live, magic constantly being emanated from the levitation engines installed underneath each palace. There were other dwellings as well, but compared to the above-mentioned species, their's were more modest in comparison to the grandeur of these.

But compared to these species, humans had the most basic, boring buildings, with their uniform shapes and designs. Yet despite all these issues, their homes were the warmest, with genuine joy and happiness radiating from the buildings, children running around the alleys, with no care in the world.

Marvelling at this sight despite visiting countless times in the past, Jake swore that he would settle and live here, just like how his parents once wished to, before the dreadful incident took place.

"Wakey wakey Jakey, we have arrived to our destination." Grud proudly steps into the platform, before opening both arms with grandeur, beams of light shining on his face, making him look like the protagonist of the story, "Welcome to Primarion, The City Of Wonders."