Snippet #1459789

It would appear that the arduous trek across the endless desert had paid off, for in the distance Danjus spotted the unmistakable landmark, regardless of having never visited it before. “Is that?-” He stopped, squinted his eyes and stared directly ahead.

“It is... it has to be,” he muttered. “We’ve made it.”

He turned around and faced his team with a huge grin plastered on his now-bearded face. “We’ve made it! We’re here!” He broke out in laughter. The physical exhaustion, the burning, almost numbing sensation in his feet and legs no longer mattered; The risk had been worth it. “Let us go,” he egged. Feeling a sudden burst of energy, he darted towards the site.

The distance to the rift was longer than he first thought, he arrived walking and was again out of energy. He stood before the ring’s steps, looking up and taking in the sight. The stairs, as big as they were, seemed like an afterthought, crudely put together from leftover concrete. He hesitated at first, fearing it’d all crumble any second, but the thought passed quickly enough. After all, several travelers, even Kiella had probably went this route before. The setup proved to be quite sturdy and his ascent was smooth. It was a short climb, two stories max.

At the top, he was greeted coldly by two guards. The armored folks milling about didn’t seem too thrilled about their job. About half appeared stern and focused while the others, further away from the rift were goofing off and idly chatting (or harassing the travellers). Despite the heavy guard presence, the ring, from what he could see, had a small town charm. The place had a few shacks and shelters scattered about with travellers of all kinds walking in and out, a small bazaar was set up and first aid stations were within easy access. While nowhere near as dense in population as Fridana, some life up at the ring was evident.