The Story Teller's Debate

Chapter I: The Rising of the Sun.The sun rises in the East... And it sets in the East.It always has, since the recording of history. No one knows why, they just know it does. The sun rises above us, than it's like time rewinds, and it goes back down.The founding of the city of Un'bridge-Laye is shrouded in a dark mystery. Founded in the merging of the cities of Unfare-Ceal, Stonebridge, and Laye, nothing is known of the founding or what caused it. They spoke of the scorching of the world, and the dark curses that brought the endless rain, and the Marching of the Many that built Unbridge.Seven hundred years have past since those days. The City of Unbridge stands surrounded by the last known cities of men. The rain still pours over the wood and stone houses, and through the cobblestone streets. It slivers between the footsteps of peasants... millions of them... like ants filling the shops and alleys, unaware that their city and life's were ending...The Farmries kept the city alive. Massive towers growing food on an industrial scale. 19 year old Jonathon Taylor worked shafts and farming in the Morgana-Thaft Farmry, in the District of Hess. The jobs were long and testing. Pay wasn't much better. Jonathon had finished the night as day approached. He head under and over pouring rain that fell from holes in the barrel vault roof of the Farmry. The rain fed the numerous floors of crop. Spheres of firestone hung over the plants, illuminating the waterfalls and giving artificial light to the plants. Jon sat down near the cold lancet window cut into the thick wooden walls.Looking out across the city, Jon examined what he saw. The sky was covered in pouring clouds, just thin enough to spot the sun. Thick rope and wire connected the Farmry to the dark, moldy stone walls of the other buildings, supporting the 8 floors of the building. The distance was filled with rope and high-hung bridges of wood, connecting the tallest buildings in the background.The city and towering buildings didn't end. They just kept on going into the distance. The standing castle filled a section of his view, standing above the city. The clouds lite up blue around it, as they did all the tall buildings, but the castle stood out the most. Great magics kept the buildings from collapsing on their own weight. The magic lite the buildings with the blue highlight that seemed to give the city what little lighting it had.Richard Thaft, the bearded and broad co-owner of the Farmry, walked up from around the corner, and stared across the horizon."Richard." Jon smiled."Taylor. Everyday I see the same sky that you look at, yet you see something different..." Richard spoke with open thoughts."The lights are fading.""How do you know that?" Richard looked at the blue, it seemed lesser than when he was a child. "Well, I guess everything must fade. Have you been paid today?""No."Richard reached in his pocket to grab the boy's pay. "Well here some Crests. While you're free, head to the West Thaft Farmry to fill in for one of the farmers. A shaft collapsed on him.""Well... I was hoping to head to the marketplace, then to bed. I've been up all night.""If you ever want a promotion, Taylor, you need to pick up overtime." The boy got up and tried to hold back a yawn. Richard shook his head, and said, "get some sleep after the market." Jon smiled with great joy and begun running to the market, forgetting to clean himself off.The King's District was full in the morning. 20 year old Sephara of the House of Leven, walked under the nave of the covered street, while water poured from the pillars between her and the rest of the street. Pipes lined the buildings and broken windows were as numerous as rain drops. Cups covered the street, collecting water for drinks, one for everyone homeless peasant laying under the nave.Rain in the street, homeless under the nave. Neither were proper for a Noble's Daughter to walk in. Especially of the House of Leven. While not a House that rules a district, like the House of Hess, they were powerful. No, Sephara shouldn't be here. She should be in the court watching the jousting tournaments and playing Colf. Instead, her father made her walk through the markets to replace what she had broken.The shop she needed was across the road. She made a turn, but found herself running into a peasant."Watch it scav!" She exclaimed."Excuse me." She heard from the peasant. Turning, she catch the boys eyes. Jonathon, the peasant, stared at her with anger. She was scared, and he knew it. She had made weak skinned nobles mad, but not a peasant like Jon. His chin was as broad as it was dirty. His arms were as thick as they were tan. A tan requires light... The only place with enough light to give someone a tan is a Farmry... This was a farmer, and he looked it to.Sephara had angered a boy with the attitude and strength do a lot of harm to her, and in the market, for that matter. Surprisingly, though, Jon turned and left. It had been enough fun for one day, so she ran across the street, finished buying what her father wanted, and left.Later that day, after returning and the market and getting some sleep, Jon got up from his straw bed yawning. He had a big day planned, starting with the late-night tournaments being held in the District of Bolan.The city was broken into 92 districts, each with a House ruling it. Each house held a court, and an army... small ones. The Nobles cared little about maintaining life for the peasants. While crime exceeds 20,000 a day, and poverty holds nearly all of the peasants, the Nobles bath away in taxes and fortune.The House of Bolan, unlike the cruel House of Hess, attempts to hold festivals every year to make the peasants happy. There wasn't a way in all Unbridge that Jon would miss the Festival. He got dressed in his finest rags with the least holes, and headed out in the rain.The gate between the two Districts was massive. Standing nearly 7 stories above Jon. and made of Midnight Blue blocks of solid stone, 7 feet tall and 12 feet long. The bricks alone dwarfed him. Walking through the 18 foot thick walls took forever... The rain poured down the sides, falling over the entrances. They lite deep blue from the highlights of the towering buildings, and the bright blue torch lights held by the guards roaming the entrances. Jon made it from the walls to a covered sidewalk.The peasants on the other side seemed to head across, moving around a dead peasant. Jon made his way into the building to his left, only to see guards questioning the owner regarding a theft the night before. Jon was curious what happened, since the guards in front of him were Centri Atari. The Centri Atari wore knight's helmets that had large glass goggles to see through, and a gas mask crafted in. They covered their Armour in cloth and bandages. Green seemed to glow from their eyes, something Jon noticed as the Centri begun staring at him.Leaving, Jon heard in the background announcements being spoke."Here all the Word of the King and his House!" As the announcer always said first, "No form of Magic shall be practiced within the Districts of Hess, Furin, Lodaz, Alddar, and Sheth!..." He continued to speak, but Jon stopped paying attention when a boy of his age walked up to him.The 19 year old boy with fine clothes, blackened hair, and tired eye, begun speaking to him, "Hello. um. Can you help me?""Sure, I guess... What's wrong?""I don't know. I woke up, and everything was different... What year is it?""Uh... Um..." Jon couldn't imagine the possible reasons for such a question. "The year is 721 A.U... Why? When did you go to sleep?""Appearantly 721 years ago..."Jon stirred at the boy in confusion. A boy of that age would have seen the founding of the city. Such a boy would know about the world before Un'bridge-Laye... Such a boy would be... Impossible..."Father!" Sephara called for him, and waited for his arrival. She laid on the ground in the Jousting court, covered by a barrel vaulted ceiling, keeping an eye open for him."What is it, Seph?" He came out from the stables, having been checking up on his prized horse."A peasant boy in the market tried attacking me!""Really? You seem fine to me.." The father laughed."It's not funny, Father, I was scared.""I remember when you used to call me Daddy. What happened to that?""Father!""Fine fine," he laughed, "And what did you do to make him try attacking you? Remember to be honest."She looked at him for a moment... "Called him a bad name...""And did he try to hurt you?"Sephara looked around a little, than looked down. "No... But he got mad at me..."Her father sat down beside her and laughed. "Don't worry, he's just a peasant. His opinion of you doesn't matter.""Now!" Her mother came from nowhere, and put in her thoughts, "Remember that our own King Louvre was an orphaned peasant, adopted by the King before him, who was also an orphaned peasant."It was true. The prior King was adopted by the dying King before. Unable to bare a son, and not hoping to see the Lord Corbal take the thrown, he adopted a peasant. A great insult to the Lord Corbal, who had been making political use of the King's illness. In the King's death, Lord Corbal went into hiding, angered by the insult he deserved. The Peasant King, keeping to the legacy of his coronation, adopted an orphan, Louvre, or now resigns over the City of Unbrdge."True enough, dear." The father smiled to his wife."Father... Does it seem like it's still daytime?" Sephara seemed confused, as she noticed the sky between the dark clouds was still lite."What?" The Father got up and checked the window. The Mother came to see as well.'"Dear... The Sun..." The Mother looked to her husband..."It's... In the West..."For the first time in over 700 years, the Sun rose in the East, and was setting in the West...The sun hadn't got Jon attention yet. He still stared at the black haired boy, while everyone else begun pointing to the sky. The boy simpy stared back, and than came the Centri Atari...