The Inventor’s Guild was housed in a massive building in the center of the capitol, matched in size only by the magnificent palace and temple that stood nearby. Together, those three buildings formed the heart of the city and symbolized the three virtues upon which the kingdom had been established: piety, loyalty and creativity. Though similar in size, the three buildings stood in stark contrast to each other. The temple was a smooth white pyramid with a sharp spire, representing purity and communion with an emphasis on heavenly things. The palace was a thing of excesses, decorated with gold accents and statues of past leaders. The Inventor’s Guild seemed to balloon out in almost grotesque aerial alcoves that looked as though they would fall off at any moment. Smoke billowed from several chimneys that poked through the top and a gigantic wooden lattice crowned it. Hoists and cranes adorned several of the outer surfaces and some of the large doors near them stood open to the world as supplies were brought in to the upper levels.

The city radiated away from the central triad with three main roadways passing straight through to the enormous outer wall that encompassed the entire city and some of the surrounding countryside. The rest of the roads formed a complex labyrinth that was negotiable only by those who had spent years learning the intricate curves and intersections. The main roadways were packed with people and horses on both sides but the middle of each one was occupied only with a pair of narrow trenches. Over the tops of the shops and houses ran the complicated aqueduct system that branched off from a river several miles outside of the city. Once it passed the city walls it split off into smaller and smaller ducts, branching through the city like capillaries.

It was to this mass of men and mazes that Pelu arrived after his long trek. He had been able to ride along for a way with a farmer carrying his goods to a larger town for sale, and for a few days with a traveling merchant, but most of his journey had been made on foot. By the time he arrived at the towering gate he had only enough money for one night in an inn, and even then only if it was a very cheap one. He had no friends, no information, no plan, and no money. All he had was his determination and a dream.