Sjal stepped through the portal with a handful of other women. Paradise was getting big enough to have portals opened to it, though they were still fairly uncommon. It still cost money though, and so women pooled together money if they thought they were attractive enough to make the cut. Whether they were fertile enough was anyone's guess, but most every young woman was fertile so that had never been an issue.
Sjal kept pace with the group that walked slowly towards the gate that separated Paradise from the firelands. It was mostly for show at this point, as the barrier around the town was still being constructed. Still, everyone was made to line up at the gate where a couple of women holding weaponry inspected them. It would be obvious to Sjal that they weren't trained for combat. They were simply volunteers, by the looks of how they held their weapons. If there were any real trouble, their screams would be plenty to alert whoever was actually in charge of security.
"What's going on over here?" asked the guard when they finally looked over Sjal. "You look a little young to be here. The dragon does not have any interest in children."
"Yes," said the other, "and what's with those clothes? You know what goes on in Paradise, do you not? This is a place of pleasure, not a war zone." One ran their finger along the sheath of the blade that Sjal had strapped to her side. They then turned their attention to her armor. It was decently made, though clearly not meant for actual battle. It was the kind of thing someone wore on their travels to deter danger more than protect from it. Not that the woman noticed, anyways.
"I'm here to see Caelum," the girl said flatly. "He doesn't turn away an audience, I hear. I have a right to talk to him."
The guards looked at each other uneasily. "I guess that's true. He did say people are allowed to visit him… This better not be some ploy to get in and escape though. Give us your sword and I suppose Saeren will take you inside."
Sjal gingerly unstrapped her katana and handed it over. She was pleased to see that the woman escorting her was bringing it. At least then she had a chance of taking it back. The guard whistled and a couple of women came to take the others for some sort of orientation.
Once they'd gone, Saeren spoke up. "Alright, let's get going."
Meanwhile, Caelum sat upon a large chair in a room somewhere in the Aelheim Sequoia. It was still very much under construction and would be for years. A woodland skyscraper didn't get built in just a few seasons, after all. His chair was supposed to be more like a throne but he lacked the expertise to craft something so exquisite out of wood. He supposed it did not matter – he'd have something special commissioned when the tower was more developed.
He looked out at the rest of the room with a mildly pleased expression. It was a relatively long room, not so much large. A dozen women knelt on each side of the room, each holding a torch. They were supposedly worshipping him, though he was no diety and got absolutely nothing out of it. It was Flora's idea and it'd worked out fairly well so far. He noticed a certain reverence in the women's eyes when he interacted with them. The downside was, he was stuck sitting there from time to time, doing nothing but taking in the nice views.
