Ancient Elder Trees

The next day, we went outside of the city, for that special method of transport. What I saw was really special. A track of some sort was woven with the use of vines, and a wooden cart sat atop it. The track extended into the forest, and disappeared between the trees. The cart wes made out of beautifully polished wood. The design was elegant but basic, no special ornaments or details. The cart lacked any wheels though. It just sat atop the track, motionless. There was a house next to the track, to which we headed.

Yater spoke with the Elysian inside, and bought the tickets for us. He told me to sit inside the cart, and wait. The cart had a roof over our heads, and benches for us to sit. It could easily fit ten people. Suddenly, the cart started moving on its own along the track. "Wow! Is this thanks to Formations?", I exclaimed. Yater nodded, and replied "Yes. This is just the beginning though, wait till we gain some speed".

Indeed, the cart got faster and faster, until we broke out of the forest and rose above it. The track extended above the forest, and I saw other tracks branching out to different locations. The view… It was something else. When I looked back through the cart's window, I saw the Ancient Mountain in its full glory. The forest was below us, as well as the beautiful sights on the horizon. Yater smiled, and said "Even if we ran using our skills, we wouldn't be able to go that fast. Elysians created many tracks, on which those types of carts can travel. It really is something else, especially if you experience it for the first time".

I nodded, and looked at the sights. I saw some farms, and even mines in the distance. There were no huge buildings, walls or anything. Elysian Empire looked as natural as one could get. Everything was designed to integrate with nature, not go against it. 'In that sense alone, Endrosians are complete opposite. We usually build our settlements, cities or whatever, to separate ourselves from nature. Elysians integrate everything, to accommodate the nature' I thought.

This setting alone, felt peaceful to me. Something, I haven't encountered, not to that extent. 'I'm almost glad Endrosians didn't invade this place. They would ruin it' I thought. The cart travelled silently, without any bumps or hiccups. Only the sound of wind could be heard. I asked Yater "Why don't we do the...". Yater stopped me, and shook his head. I thought we were safe. After all, no one was around.

Yater didn't comment nor explained. I could only shut it, and marvel at the sights. We travelled for a few hours, before I saw what looked like another city. This time it was not a mountain, but huge trees extending upwards, almost reaching the skies. The trees were also different, very different from what I witnessed till that day. A huge trunk was the most prominent part of the tree, but the tree's crown, was majestic.

A sort of disk shaped crown, flat at the top, extended over the earth below, and provided shade to the Elysians. The trees were not green either. Their barks, not brown but a sort of whitish grey colour, while the leaves were purple in colour. I asked "Those trees… What are they?". Nathan explained "Elysians call them Ancient Elder Trees. Those trees are thousands of years old, and still very healthy. Elysian care a lot about those trees, and as far as I'm aware, you will not find them anywhere else. These are the only trees in existence, and they grow in this place alone".

Yater added "Elysians use those trees as their homes. There is one more thing. You see the crown right? It is the house of an ancient kind of bird. The Moonlight Swallow… It can be found on those trees only. The Moonlight Swallows are Elysians' pride and joy. Maybe we will be able to witness some of them". I asked "How do the look like?". Yater smiled in response, and said "If we don't encounter any, I will tell you. For now, we will wait and see".

The cart began slowing down, until it crawled to a stop just outside of the city. 'I don't know if I should call this a city though. It doesn't look like any I've seen so far' I thought. We got off the cart, and Yater said "This is Elder City, named after the trees you saw from the cart. Let's go". The city was really different. Although I saw Atols living atop trees, this was completely different. Houses were integrated into the trees, but there were those on the ground as well. Everything was built using wood and stone. The wood had an ancient feel to it, while the stones were no less ancient. The huge Ancient Elder Trees were also occupied. Elysians built ramps and stairs around the trees, in order to climb them. They were also living inside them. The weird thing was, the ramps extended to a certain point only, then abruptly ceased. I decided to ask about it later.

Yater said "You will see how this city changes during the night. It's something else entirely". We walked through the city, and looked at the Elysian architecture. The Elysians looked at us once in a while, because we were the ones sticking out like sore thumbs. Everyone had tattoos, we didn't. We also wore different types of clothing. Elysians used natural resources only, to create clothing for themselves. The fabrics and whatnot, were created from plants. Elysian ate animals, just like any other Human, but they didn't do it daily. Meat was mostly used by them for special occasions, or by the warriors. Most of the time, they ate plants.

While we walked towards our new accommodation, we stumbled upon a statue. It didn't depict a Human, but a walking tree. 'There is a race of walking trees in the North, but this tree looks much different. Healthy, more refined and ancient' I thought. I didn't know if I could ask, so I looked at Yater. He said "You want to know about the statue?". I nodded. Yater explained "This creature is called Ent. Elysians and Ents live together on this land, although Ents are really hard to find. They don't really appear in the public, Ents are the guardians of nature. If someone tries to harm nature, the Ents would appear. I never saw one myself, but they are revered throughout the whole Empire, and treated with respect".

I decided to ask more about them later. We soon arrived in front of a tree, with a house built into it. The tree trunk was really large in breadth, while its crown rather small compared to the trunk. It didn't grow too tall, only about fifteen metres. Yater pressed his token onto the doors built into the trunk, and they opened. We walked inside, and Yater tapped onto the ground. I asked "Is this some sort of ritual? If you tap, we can talk normally, or something?".

Yater smiled, and replied "No, not at all. I'm simply using an illusion. They use Formations to spy on us everywhere. Even the cart we used to travel here, had Formations that could relay information. That is why we can't ever talk freely outside. The rules are, we can't use our skills in the public, but we can at our accommodation. They placed Formations inside this house too, but they are not that strong, especially for us masters".

Nathan continued, "Although it may look peaceful and nice outside, this land is a dictatorship. Every house, building and even plants, have an information relay Formation. Everyone has to obey the rules. Even if Elysians break them, they can be punished for that". Irwin added "They consider nature to be alive. The cart, houses and whatnot, is alive according to them. That is why they place Formations on them. Stuff like swords and other objects, are not considered alive. It's really stupid, and they are big hypocrites as well. As if a stone is alive".

I asked "What about those Ents? Are they strong?". Yater replied "I don't know. Supposedly, they are the guardians of the Elysian Empire. I don't know that much, but Elysians do pay homage to them in one way or another. How this works, and what they give? I have no idea. Ents are supposedly very strong, and they can command nature. If a group of Ents attacked us, we would be in deep trouble… Supposedly. For all we know, these creatures might not even exist".

I asked "What about those birds? Do they appear often?". Yater said "They do appear for sure. I saw them myself. When and how often they appear, is a mystery to me. We will stay a day or two here, and maybe we can spot them. It's better to witness them, instead of me telling you". I asked another question "I saw that the ramps and stairs on the Ancient Elder Tree, suddenly stopped at a certain point. Is there a reason for that?". Yater nodded, and replied "There is. Elysians are not allowed to access the territory of the Moonlight Swallows. If the Moonlight Swallows want to interact with Elysians, they will come down themselves".

I nodded, and asked "So what is the plan?". Yater replied, "We came here to relax. This place has some of the best relaxing spots. Their natural springs can remove all the fatigue from your body, and even improve your bodily functions. Those things are on the more expensive side, but whatever".

Irwin said "Great! It's been a while since I was able to relax like this". Yater shot him a glance, but didn't say anything. Obviously he would have to pay again. I looked around our new accommodation, and found it to be very pleasing too. The furniture looked like it grew to that shape. The table still had branches sticking out of its legs. The chairs were the same. 'Relaxing is also good. I always train, and strain my body' I thought, and sat in one of the chairs.