The great ancient city of Oakland was as vast as eyes could wander. It was scenic and picturesque to say the least. The stunning and glorious city had a paronamic view of great walls towering towards to sky, covering the expanse of the city within their warm embrace.
Within the impenetrable walls, were steep fortified citadels and a sprawling lower town, the citadels divided into rising terraces.
At the heart of the city stood breathtaking and grandiose temples, towering well above any other structure in the city. They revered their god so much that the temples were the most beautiful and most pristine, made entirely of white marble and limestone.
They were built with the Corinthian order for its splendor and luxury and the temples were covered with domes while colossal pillars were holding the magnificent temples in their palms.
Around the wall of the stunning city were five prodigious statues of apex predators. At the two corners of the eastern wall of the city were bronze statues, one of a cheetah, smithed to perfection. The other was of a hyena, its bone crushing maw wide open as if chuckling hysterically.
At the westernmost corners of the wall were two silver statues, much bigger and more pronounced than their bronze counterparts. One was of a leopard, fierce and ferocious, its fangs bared in a feral snarl.
At the other corner stood a jet black panther, its stunning coat lustreless with tawny rossets spots set against an even more pitch black background of dark fur.
The last statue was colossal and magnificent than the rest, made entirely of pure gold. It stood majestically at the main gate of Oakland, right above the gate. It was a figure of a feisty barbary lion, with a majestic dark mane that cascaded down from its humongous head, neck, shoulders, all the way down to its belly. It had powerful forelegs, isolated and pronounced body muscles built to overpower any animal under the light of the sun, it's hypnotizing eyes sending shivers down spines of everyone who fixed their gaze on it.
Kodesh had seen the statue of the feral Barbary lion as he sidled through the city gates. It was hard to miss.
Immediately as his eyes laid upon it, he felt an eerie sensation coursing through him and instantly forced his gaze away from the monument.
Traversing through the breathtaking city, Kodesh couldn't help but feel stupefied and amazed by the beauty and the sophistication of Oakland architecture, especially their distinct repertoire of elements including unique stones and white marble. It was just a wonder to see.
The sun was at its peak, the noontide sunlight easily filtering through the streets but Kodesh didn't know where to start searching for his family so he traversed to the market to buy some new clothes and a short while later he found a lodging.
The lodge was a big improvement from the small lodge at Nomia. The room was much bigger, with a large window, the cold breeze easily slipping in. The bed was fluffy and comfortable, big enough to fit three people. It kind of reminded him of home. But there was something that was permeating the air that was unlike anything he had felt before.
It was some kind of dark magic, sinister and eerily sapping and numbing his senses. It was coming from the center of the city, right where the temples were located.
Kodesh took a quick shower and changed into new clothes. While awaiting food, he rested on the cozy bed, trying but all means to ignore the menacing and ominous aura of ancient dark magic filling the atmosphere.
'Wow, it feels nice to sleep on a bed.'
Kodesh intoned as his back was caressing the fluffy bed, his gaze fixed on the ceiling. He wasn't going to sleep on that bed tonight. He imagined himself running for his life the whole night if things went to plan so there was no cozy sleep tonight.
An eternity later, food was served. It was hot stew and warm bread baked over coals, it's mouth drooling flavors wafting through the air. It looked appealing and appetizing to the eye so without wasting time, kodesh devoured the plate.
Grinding sounds of teeth and voracious chewing resonated in the spacious room, Kodesh's eyes dilated with love.
As he was about to finish up the plate of food, he realized something.. the food was horrible and unpalatable. He was so starving that he just shoveled down the food without much care about how it tasted and his taste buds only came to their senses when he was fully satiated.
The stew was not seasoned properly and was undercooked, the bread was doughy and squishy, sticking to the hand as he was eating. It was the worst plate of food Kodesh had ever eaten in his life. Even he cooks better than that.
I am pretty sure he would choose the village lodge with it's fragmented chairs and sunken beds than this lodge. Though the old woman running the lodge was shady and the dark haired girl was gloomy and always angry, the jovial white haired girl and her cooking was more than enough to make him stay there.
Kodesh washed down the distasteful and disagreeable food with water, at least the water tasted the same.
With that he decided to start scouring the city in desperate search for his family. He walked towards the door and immediately glanced back at the bed. He had never slept on a bed for an eternity so it was a rather rueful goodbye. Going back to feel its smooth and soft fabric for the last time, Kodesh jumped into the bed.
And in the next moment, sharp cracking and snapping sound of breaking bed frame reverberated as Kodesh broke the bed in two.
"Oops."
The one thing he avoided at the village lodge had happened. Startled and frightened by what he had just done, Kodesh's heart sank. He didn't have the money to pay for the bed, let alone spend another night at even the cheapest lodge.
He stood there for a while, frozen and motionless. And after some time, he realized that no one had heard the commotion so he decided to sidle out of the lodging. He wasn't going to return so fingers crossed, he wasn't going to bump into them as he was searching for his family.
A short while later he was in the streets, a grim look hinting in his face. He looked for a secluded spot and once there, he summoned eight distinct clones, all dressed differently. And they spread out through the city while he went towards were the dark sinister magic was coming from. He knew it wasn't human and he also knew he was going to face whatever it was casting such menacingly intense and overwhelming dark aura so he wanted to get up-close with it before that time comes.