The grey of the evening sky was a sort of welcomed escape for Aislyn. Alvadas had very little variation when it came to ‘regular’ weather, excluding any sort of oddities that came with Alvadas being more illusion than actual city, but when the sun did shine, it shone bright. And bright light, on Aislyn’s list of things she was not a fan of, was fairly high up. She’d come to be used to it, after twenty-some years of squinting every time she stepped outside, but it still bothered her when she thought about it. That’s why she enjoyed the clouds and the seclusion of night so much. An evening stroll with the weather like that was, of course, called for.
And stroll the artist did, taking with her a light bag with her notebook, waterskin, and not much else. On her way out the door, her mother had tried to push some bread into her hands to take with her. Which would have been a welcomed gesture, should the loaf had not been several weeks old and more green than brown. Aislyn had, of course, accepted the gift happily, though it had become bird food the moment she was out of her mother’s sight.
Instead, she opted for a much fresher loaf from a salesman just closing shop, along with a few pieces of honey candy. She had never been one for sweets, but perhaps her mother would like it.
As she walked along, the stillness of the streets allowed her a moment to relax. She had missed these streets, during the chaos of the previous season. She still had occasional bouts of fear that something grotesque and rather dead was going to jump out at her from behind a building, and often woke up in a sweat after a dream reliving the events. But it was alright. She had learned a lot from the events. Like how close death was at any given moment.
Looking up towards the sky, Aislyn found herself struck by a sudden oddity in the streets. A particularly tall building, that seemed to be barely holding itself up. Blackened and riddled with signs of age, it had the occasional jutting of a balcony, but not much else. And the
height! Oh, imagine what she could see from up there. Probably the entirety of Alvadas, if she were lucky. Perhaps even farther. The Patchwork Port. The Suvan Sea. The hills and mountains surrounding the city she loved so dearly.
If she were honest with herself, such thoughts were probably nothing more than wishful thinking, but she could certainly hope.
And, certainly, find out.
She had climbed buildings before, but she didn’t even know where to start with this one. All the buildings around it seemed to keep it at an arm’s length, not to mention there was a distinct lack of any sort of entryway. That was unfortunate.
As she was scanning the building, however, something caught her eye.
Or, rather, some
one. A woman, looking down from a balcony on the top level of the building. Surely, she had found a way up. And from the look of the elegant outfit she donned, it wasn’t by climbing. An easier way, perhaps.
Moving to the center of the plaza, Aislyn watched as another man left the area in a rather angry manner, leaving the place very empty and very… quiet.
Silently, Aislyn entered the center of the plaza, filling the emptiness. She questioned why the man had been there at all, but even greater why he had left in such a huff. The woman didn’t seem like a malicious type, but looks could certainly be deceiving. Speaking of which, it seemed the dark shape was looking everywhere
but down where Aislyn was, instead gazing off into what must have been an amazing view.
There was a sadness about her. A sadness that seemed almost hopeless; always, hopeless.
It spoke of something. Something that Aislyn was rather familiar with. Surely, this couldn’t be what she thought it was. There was such a grace with the way the woman stood, but a weight there as well. It was strange how clearly the artist could make out her features. Wherever moonlight
did work its way through the cloud cover, it almost caressingly christened the shape of her face in the darkness of the night. Her hair fell freely, swept out from behind her by the wind. She really
was beautiful.
"Excuse me," she spoke tentatively; still, as always, paranoid of what the situation could bring,
"but how did you get up there?"There was a very high possibility the woman was a beautiful illusion, and Aislyn wouldn't doubt it for a second if she turned out to be so. There had been more stunning things that Ionu had crafted, though a building
and an entire person all at once seemed more rare. If a deity could turn a city upside down, inside out, underwater, in the air, who was to say what they
couldn't do?