Total pages in book: 60
Estimated words: 57184 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 286(@200wpm)___ 229(@250wpm)___ 191(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 57184 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 286(@200wpm)___ 229(@250wpm)___ 191(@300wpm)
Alwar continues, “The Scholar People’s records say that humans attempted to seal the doorway with rocks and mud—a primitive form of plaster. It did not work, so they built a great fire to prevent any creatures from coming through. Then, one day, another doorway opened, then another. Humans kept building fires to make the doorways impassable. Over time, the smoke blocked our skies and turned them red.”
“The entire planet? You’d have to chop down every tree in Pennsylvania to make that much smoke.” Then you’d need to keep finding more wood. Sounds a little farfetched, but then again, these are old stories.
“The smoke was only part of the issue. The sparks from the bonfires would float high in our atmosphere and drop. We were plagued with forest and brush fires. Then our sea ignited. The creatures who once lived there were very gaseous.”
An ocean filled with farts. How lovely. Must be why Monsterland still smells like sulfur.
He goes on, “It was called the Age of Fire. It lasted thousands of years. They say it became so hot that it stopped raining. Only the plants and trees that could absorb moisture from the air survived and flourished. Same for the creatures.”
So it was the humans who caused Monsterland to look like this. No wonder they want to eat us.
“Do you think maybe this is the real reason the War People agreed to help with the wall? To stop the humans from making all those fires?”
“No. The wall was an opportunity for my people to live more securely. The War People were constantly fending off attacks from other kingdoms. Our meat and blood is prized by many.”
I can attest to that. Giants. Hmmm…tasty. “Well, it’s pretty crappy that your world was trashed.”
“Humans did what they needed to survive and keep the monsters out. I do not blame them for wishing to defend themselves.”
“I’m just saying that it would have been better for everyone if they’d found another way to survive and live in peace.”
“The kingdoms here do not want peace.”
Exactly my problem. I don’t want to tip my hand, so I think carefully before posing my next question. “I have to wonder, though, who created the doorway to begin with. Both worlds would have been better off if they’d never mingled.”
“Who’s to say it wasn’t a natural occurrence? Or perhaps the gods created them.”
So he has no clue. I make a note to ask the Scholar People if there are any records. There has to be a way to close those doorways permanently. “So how does the wall work exactly? How does it keep our worlds separate?”
“Why so many questions today?”
“I’m the ruler now. Shouldn’t I know everything about Monsterland?”
He nods. “The wall does not separate our worlds; it encases the doorways, protects them. Like a great vault.”
Oh! A lightbulb goes on. I always assumed the wall was a barrier, separating their world from mine, but I couldn’t be more wrong. It’s just one big, long fortress that houses the doorways leading to my world.
“So if the wall isn’t a physical barrier between worlds, what’s the point of the structure? Why a wall?” I ask. “And what’s on the other side?” I know one side has fields where they grow food.
“Our legends say the land on the other side was once a lush green forest. Now it is a wasteland, burned so many times during the Age of Fire that the soil is toxic. Nothing, not even the hardiest of creatures, can survive there. It is dangerous to even travel over it.”
Interesting. “So it acts as a barrier to attack on one side, like building your castle on a cliff so you only have to defend one side.”
“Yes.”
“And why’s the wall so tall and long? Why not just build a big castle to protect the doorways?” Imagine the Great Wall of China, if that wall reached so high in the sky that it disappeared into the clouds.
“After the first portion of the wall was completed, the War People started living longer. Our population exploded, and we began fighting amongst ourselves for land. There was not enough to go around. The solution was to build up and along the narrow stretch of land that runs along the edge of the wasteland—save the farmable land for growing crops. Now, everyone lives in the wall, in their own dwellings. It’s a much more efficient use of space.”
That makes perfect sense. They saved their land for growing food and kept the footprint of the wall as small as possible. Also, having the wasteland on one side gives them more protection.
“How many War People are there, exactly?” I ask.
“I normally do not disclose this information, but we are over thirty thousand, which includes a thousand Wall Men and several thousand trained warriors who make up our regular army. The Wall Men never leave the keep except under special circumstances.”