The Quiet Ever After

Croissant City - 5

Dave would've been proud of how Isaac handled meeting the entirety of the Zanderia, the pantheon of heroes gathered in the great hall of Itucz. Not all of them were in attendance. Riko, of course, stood above the rest. His imposing demure was only in that, outside of combat, the man was a big softie. He couldn't help himself if someone was having a minor convenience. He'd be there to fix it. He had muscles built atop muscles and an aura that simply couldn't go away. It was no wonder he was chosen as the leader of the heroes protecting the entire Starlit Plane.

Leley, Spirit of the Wind, was with them, too. Her near-clear skin shifted and wavered like a gentle breeze, her hair wafting about even though it was all tied up in the latest Itucz style.

The Phoenix of Itucz had been the one to initially greet them on the gathering floor. His blue wings startled Isaac momentarily but were such a beautiful sight that they quickly captivated the raccoon. The Phoenix was indeed a man but had a beak-like nose and skin mottled with blue feathers from his transformation into the role.

Prism had also joined them: he was a Fae creature capable of bending light into different kinds of magic depending on the intensity and color of the light he had at his disposal to manipulate.

Axel could never help feeling so small when in their company. They, and even those not at the meeting hall quite yet, were titans of the Starlit Plane. That they'd all gathered in one spot would have been an absolute miracle were Itucz not legendary in its own right. After all, it wasn't until Axel and his friends began their adventures in the Starlit Plane did anyone realize the lost city of Itucz was still real, hidden deep within the once-treacherous Broken Forest.

The great hall of the Zanderia appeared modest in comparison to those who occupied it. Once, it'd been a gathering place for Fae people to graduate into new abilities and powers. Most cities in the Starlit Plane had those, so, Itucz's building was abandoned and repurposed once the Zanderia's old home was destroyed by Faustus and Jericho.

High ceilings shot into the air. Four magically-powered lifts stood at the corners of the room. They all stopped at the seventh floor to prevent non-Zanderia members from going to the vaunted eighth floor, where they conducted their business and held meetings.

Each floor had a unique design. While they'd mostly renovated it to remove the arduous combat and magically intensive vibe, some of the floors were still used for Zanderian combat training. The fourth floor was left entirely intact as it was simply a wide-open room that had been infused with an illusory spell, transporting anyone to a desired location with infinite space to train or learn magic. The sixth floor was a much tighter one. The Zanderia kept all of their personal belongings there if they were to stay at the building for some time, locked away in multiple layers of puzzles in case anyone tried to steal their things.

The building was much longer than it was wide. Taken horizontally, Axel's house was likely as wide as the rooms. But it easily topped most skyscrapers back home. The people of the Starlit Plane enjoyed building up, to reach the stars the Fae so adored. They never would, of course, but forever pursued a heavenly realm they already occupied.

Axel and Isaac joined the group on the third floor, a vast expanse of intricate stone, one a bit different than the stone the rest of the building was made of. Old stained glass windows of ancient Fae tales lined the walls, painting the congregation in various colors.

"I wish you'd have reached out sooner," Riko said. They each had their own assigned seats. There were ten in total on the direct floor and others that could be summoned from the wall. Axel sat in one of those since he was only an honorary member. One permanent seat would be forever unoccupied in memory of the man who died defending it: Kyle, his brother.