The princess's entourage guided everyone to a duel arena deeper into the palace. They descended a few sets of stairs on the way, making Lucius think that the arena would be underground. However, when they reached their destination, he was surprised to find a wide-open expanse of sky above his head.
The same octagonal towers he had seen from outside surrounded the arena, blocking any view in or out of the arena. It felt like they were at the bottom of a giant stone tube.
The arena itself was also shaped like a large octagon. Several massive crystals glowing with a pale blue-green light were embedded at even intervals along the walls up the sides of the tower. A few dozen crystals emitting light lined the wall about head height above the ground to compensate for the inability of natural sunlight to penetrate this deeply into the arena.
"Quite a setup." Desmond whistled. "What's with the big blue-looking ones?"
