The Cycles of Revelation Series

Artifact of the Dawn: Barriers (A Queer Sci-Fi Adventure)

Episode 7: Continuing their search through the forbidden woods, Jevan and Ardyn have their way forward blocked by a mysterious force.

The next morning, Jevan stashed his heavy pack inside the structure, only bringing a small pack with rations and water, along with his bow and quiver. It was late morning when Jevan spotted something that could be another structure. “Over here!” he called out to Ardyn, who was investigating around a nearby boulder.

Jevan pulled out his knife and began cutting away the overgrowth. He soon realized this structure was something different. Ardyn joined him in pulling away the vegetation that covered the large object. It took them the rest of the morning to clear away enough to get a better look at it.

It stood three times as tall as Jevan, and it could have been used to travel, with strange wheels surrounded by a continuous track of metal plates with protrusions that looked like they were designed to grip the ground. At one end was a broad, curved metal plate that reminded Jevan of a shovel.

“What is this thing?” Ardyn asked as he stepped back and stared at it.

“I’m not sure,” Jevan replied. “See those wheels? I think they would help it move over the ground, and that end seems to be for digging. But it’s far too large for any animal to pull.”

“So, not a dwelling like the other structure we found. Assuming that was a dwelling at all. It didn’t seem like a cozy place to live.”

“You’re right, although if we added some furnishings, that could make it livable,” Jevan said as he climbed up to get a better look at this unusual thing. There was a small, glass enclosed structure at the top. “There is a small seat inside of here, facing a bunch of knobs and leavers. Maybe these things helped make this thing move, but I have no idea how.”

“I don’t think trying to make a giant digging machine work will solve the mystery of the Aria’una. Let’s move on, while we still have daylight,” Ardyn suggested.

In the late afternoon, as they crested over a small rise, they saw something that made them stop in their tracks. In the valley below stood a tall tower, all metal and glass, gleaming in the sunlight. Even the ground around the tower shone with a glint of metal. It rose into the sky, taller than any tree. If it hadn’t been in a deep valley, they would have easily seen the tower rising above the surrounding treetops.

“What is that?” Ardyn asked with wonder. “How could anyone build a structure so tall?”

“I don’t know,” Jevan replied as he stared at it in amazement. “I’ve heard tales of taller buildings in the cities of my ancestors, across the ocean, but I doubt even those could have towered that high. That looks incredible!”

They approached the gleaming tower with caution, descending the steep hillside. As they neared the tower, Jevan spotted a doorway at the base of the tower. “Let’s see if we can get inside,” he suggested, eagerly striding ahead of Ardyn, when he quite literally walked into a wall.

Falling backward, Jevan landed on his ass. “Falx!” Jevan cursed as Ardyn ran over. Having been a few steps ahead of Ardyn, it had thankfully saved the elf from this indignity. Looking up, he saw Ardyn reaching out a hand to help him up.

“Thanks,” Jevan said, dusting off his clothes.

“What happened?” Ardyn asked as Jevan cautiously walked over to the invisible barrier he’d collided with. Looking more closely, he held out his hands until they felt something that was less solid as much as pushing back against his hand.

“I ran into… something,” Jevan replied, his hands running over whatever this barrier was. “It’s almost completely invisible, but it’s there. Can you see how it makes the air shimmer when I touch it?”

***

Stepping closer, Ardyn looked at Jevan’s hands. “Yes! I see it. How odd.” Reaching out, Ardyn tried to touch it as well, but his hand passed right through. However, he could still feel it. It was an odd sensation, like trying to push through water without getting wet. Ardyn kept going and a moment later, he stood on the other side of the barrier.

“Why am I not surprised?” Jevan groused. “Everything about this place seems designed to let elves in and keep Medellans out. It looks like I won’t be able to go with you into the tower.”

Ardyn gave Jevan a wry smile. “I’m sorry you feel so left out,” he teased.

Rolling his eyes, Jevan ignored Ardyn’s teasing and reached up as high as he could, his hands following the surface of the strange wall. “This wall seems to keep going, higher than I can reach. I wonder if it covers the entire tower.”

“This is all very bizarre,” Ardyn said, looking at the doorway and then back at Jevan, before taking out the key. “I’ll see if I can open that door.”

“Good idea,” Jevan agreed.

As he was about to turn and make his way toward the tower, Jevan stopped him. “Hey, wait a moment. I just thought of something. The larger Medellan cities along the coast all have high stone walls that were built to protect them from attack. I wonder if this… whatever this is… has the same function? That would explain why it’s keeping me out.”

“Were the walls around your cities built back during the war with my people?” Ardyn asked. “Why don’t villages like Ahren have them?”

“Many of the villages like Ahren and Yanen were built long after they signed the truce,” Jevan explained. “That truce allowed my people to build villages in the valleys where your people wouldn’t live, and your ancestors promised not to attack us. So, we didn’t have a need for such defenses anymore.”

“Okay, but why are you telling me this now?” Ardyn wondered.

“Because, with any wall, there should be a door or some way to let people in. In our cities, we have large steel portals that are locked at night. They were also locked whenever the cities were attacked during the war. But doors that can be locked can also be opened. Large doors like that are too heavy to be opened and closed easily. There’s a complex mechanism of levers, chains, and counterweights. I was just wondering if there might not be something inside that tower that could bring down this barrier and let me in.”

“That makes sense. I will look around and see if there is anything obvious, but if there’s more of that ancient writing, I won’t make any promises,” Ardyn said, before turning and making his way toward the tower.

When he approached the metal ground that surrounded the tower, Ardyn stooped to touch it. It seemed to be made of the same material as that structure they’d found. Taking a cautious step onto the strange ground, Ardyn let out a breath he didn’t even realize he was holding when he was fully standing on it. Looking ahead, he began making his way toward the door. Walking on the metal surface felt very odd to his feet, which were more used to the softer ground of the surrounding forest. Even the wooden floors of the huts back home or in Jevan’s house had more give to them than this metal did.

As he neared the doorway, he saw another slot for the key. This door slid open soundlessly, without the groaning hiss the door from their previous night’s shelter had made. Ardyn looked back at Jevan and waved before walking into the tower. As he passed through the threshold, once again, the interior came to life. Lights turned on and a variety of strange sounds began emanating from various locations within the large room he found himself in.

The ceiling stretched high above him, with several levels formed by platforms at various intervals. The platforms were all connected by a series of stairs and ladders. Facing the large, angled windows that stretched high above him, he saw many strange looking… tables? The tops were smooth, like glass. Looking closer, he saw each table had different images and script on them. Before each table was a chair bolted to the floor. He did not know how to make sense of it.

Everywhere he looked, there was more of the archaic Athla’naa script, and Ardyn understood none of it. It was likely that something in here might open a door in the wall that was blocking Jevan, but nothing within the dizzying array before him made any sense. He wished Jevan could be here, but he doubted the Medellan could understand any of it either.

Ardyn saw another doorway but decided not to venture deeper into the tower. Instead, he ascended one flight of stairs to find more of those strange tables. Aesthetically, this place was both foreign and beautiful, and somewhere in the back of his mind, it almost felt like home.

Shaking himself out of his reverie, Ardyn felt overwhelmed, so he left the tower and sprinted back to Jevan. “I can’t really describe what I saw in there, and I couldn’t make sense of anything. I’m sorry, but I don’t know if there’s any way to get you past this wall.”

“Did you see any other doors inside the tower?” Jevan asked.

“Yes, but I didn’t feel right exploring without you,” Ardyn admitted as he pushed back through the barrier, stepping onto the softer, more familiar ground. “It was very strange inside the tower, and I would feel safer having you with me.”

“Well, I don’t think we’ll find anything more fantastic than this,” Jevan said. “I feel this tower is what your elders have been hiding. I think it’s time we go confront them about what we’ve found.”

Reluctantly, Ardyn agreed. They made their way back to the first structure they’d found, each lost in thought. There, they stopped to make camp for the night. It was too late to travel farther, and they were at least two days’ walk from the perimeter of the Aria’una.

Ardyn found everything they discovered deeply disturbing. He now questioned what his elders had taught him about his ancestors and his heritage. Those questions turned into regrets. Regrets over things they had forced him to do to uphold honor and tradition. Regrets that made him feel like he had been used.

Thank you for reading. If you enjoy my writing and are not yet a member of Medium, for a nominal fee you can join and support me, to unlock more of my articles and all the content on this platform.