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13th of Summer, 514 AV
It wasnt often that I see something that amazes me, but this has to take the cake.
I had been practicing my acrobatic antics by leaping from Casinor to Casinor, acting as a courier for the Svefra pod I belonged to, which is usually my daily wakeup exercise. Today's load was canteens filled with water for the non-Svefra workers who sometimes took passage on the ships. I was just handing out the canteens to the shipmasters, when I saw two men dressed in only trousers walk past the docks, heading towards the second tier of the city. Normally, I wouldnt have payed them any attention; they seemed to be simple people, who lived here as everyone else. But when I saw them entirely ignore the stairways and paths leading up the side of the second tier, and approach a sheer rock wall, laughing and jostling each other, my eyes widended. I stood, curious.
One of them, an Akalak, waved his hand. I squinted to be sure... yes, he was beckoning to me. Dropping the last canteen into the hands of a waiting sailor, I leaped from the bow of the ship, landing on my feet on the docks. Approaching them, the other one, a human female, spoke in a cheerful voice.
"Hail, traveller!" She smiled kindly at me. "You seem rather agile on your feet. Care to join us for a climb?"
The Akalak chuckled, pointing upwards. "Tis our morning routine, you see. Scaling the cliffs here is quite a joy, and the view of the dockside tier from above is... well, you need to see it for yourself."
I made a slight face, but sighed. It was indeed tempting. The opportunity to be in the sky once more, even if not on eagleback...
"I'll do it." I nodded. "As long as you dont let me fall on my first go." I chuckled, wrapping my scarf tighter before removing my shirt, tossing it behind me onto the deck of my ship. Without further ado, the acrobat couple winked at me, before turning to the rock face.
I watched with hidden amazement as the other acrobat began to scale the cliff with relative ease. He made it look so natural and easy, like watching a spider.
There's no turning back now, I told myself and approached the cliffside where I followed after the woman, the Akalak below me waiting until I was above the first window before climbing after me. Of course, he didn't stay behind me, as he said he would, and came up beside me as I began to struggle holding onto creases and holding my own weight. It was one thing to climb the mast, where handholds were everywhere, and you had a rope around your waist just in case something happened, but this--
Damn hands, stop shaking! I gritted my teeth as my fingernails began rising from the finger beds, the heat radiating from the cliff and the sun making me sweat the higher I attempted to climb. I didn't realise that the Akalak had stopped to watch me until I heard him.
"No, no, no. You do not use your nails like an animal. You push yourself up with your feet, pull yourself with your arms and do not claw at the wall." The acrobat chuckled. "Tis a novice mistake, but easily corected. As long as you can see your next handhold, you can even use those clawed gauntlets of yours to clamber up even the flat portions a short way. However, they are utterly unsuited to hanging in place."
And for the rest of the way he pointed out where to grab and when I should haul myself up. My arms were aching, and my foot lost grip once or twice, but he grabbed the front of my leather chestpiece before I could fall to my death... and it was a lot easier than the way I had been doing it. Once, I looked down, marvelling at how small the people looked from above. The wind up here was pleasant, causing my hair to whip my face. I ceased moving until my hair fell back, and suddenly I realized how close I was to the very top!
I had never seen the city from this high up before. In fact, my previous ventures had only been climbing the short mast on Wayne's casinor, but this... The buildings stood proudly and the sun gave them a white look, the clothes hung out to dry, and rugs on top of the roofs gave the scenery some color. The sky spread out and seemed to be never ending, and the wind was cool and refreshing. I wouldn't mind coming up here when I am alone. I thought to myself as I closed my eyes, allowing my body to drink in the sensation of hanging high above the city.
"Now.." The two acrobats who had accompanied me on my way up chuckled. "Let us see how you get down on your own."
Damn... I thought, with a sinking heart
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