"The powers we work with are immense.

In the short time that we have had the crystals, we have gone from a society of famers, traders and merchants, to one that had control over even the air.

The black crystals allowed us to reach past the dimensional curtain and obtain power sources our world had never seen and, as it turned out, was not prepared for. At the height of our invention disaster struck. A young scientist, working with the largest of the crystals, opened a tear that he was unable to control.

Before, we had used the tears to pull things from other worlds. But this tear, this other world, pulled back. Before the tear was sealed our world was gone. The only thing left was the tops of the mountains, and these were only saved by devoting all of the crystal energy we have to their maintenance.

Ours lord decreed, that we should never forget the true danger in the crystals. We their power we were able to reconstruct our society, but we would ever use them above the clouds.

Ours city rests beneath this mountain, and only a few are allowed to grace the lands above, their beauty remains a testament to what we have lost, and a reminder of the true power of the crystals."

The man settled back into his chair, and Steve looked curiously out the window.

"All I see is ruins" Steve said, observing the town that lay in ruins outside of the windmill.

"Ha. A remnant." the man chuckled, "Here, take this book, it will allow you to access the elevator and descend bellow the mountain."

The man handed Steve a book and small pendant made of black crystal.

"Go to the council, I am sure they will be interested in your story. As for me, I am content on the surface, waiting for our king to return."

As he left the windmill, Steve braced himself for whatever may happen next... If what the man had said was true, then he may have found the world responsible for the tears between the dimensions.


________________________________________

Welcome to the city below the clouds.

A floating island is an amazing thing, and the structures one could build are fantastic. However, the area bellow the land is possibly a better place for a society to thrive, without destroying the land its self.

This is a slightly different spin on the "Head into the clouds" idea. But the canvas under the clouds seemed to be something that had yet to be tapped.

There is much more to come, and I will be taking a lot of time to finish and expand this city, and will likely be worked on far past the end of the contest.

World download coming soon.

Good luck to all,
-Don Swordsman