Crystal Doors #1 by Kevin J. Anderson, Rebecca Moesta Read Free Book Online

robin’s egg, and the temperature was warm but not oppressive. A soft wind stole away droplets of sweat as soon as they formed.
    Lyssandra led them along flagstoned streets, some wide and some narrow, down the hill on which Sage Rubicas’s tower laboratory stood. Gwen quickly forgot her immediate concerns and stared in fascination. At first, she tried to keep the delight from her face because she preferred to present a calm, sensible image. But with the wonders of Elantya all around her, it was hard to be aloof.
    At primary intersections, a profusion of colorful flowers attracted butterflies and sluggish bees. Aqueducts flowed with swift silvery water alongside the avenues. Tiny canals crisscrossed the streets, flowing downhill or uphill with the aid of pumps. Floating containers bobbed along the narrow channels, carrying scrolls, crystals, and occasional flowers or food.
    “Those remind me of sushi boats,” Vic said.
    “Or messages in a bottle,” Gwen said. “Is this like a pneumatic-tube messaging system?”
    The petite young woman waved a hand toward the floating containers. “Those packages are enchanted to go to a certain person, and they float through the network of channels until they arrive at the correct destination. We have other communication systems, of course, but this one is very efficient.”
    “Great way to send the mail,” Vic said with a grin.
    “We normally use skrits for mail and spell scrolls,” Lyssandrasaid, “but since skrits can only carry three times their own weight, we use the water channels for other deliveries.”
    Gwen was about to ask what “skrits” were, when they came to an area where tall, tapered silver towers stood like giant toy pinwheels. The thin curved blades flashed as they rotated. The pinwheel petals alternated between quicksilver mirrors and angled prisms, spinning a flurry of rainbows and dazzling reflections into the air like water droplets from a whirling sprinkler.
    Gwen stared, then consciously closed her mouth so she wouldn’t gape like a fish out of water. Lyssandra looked at the towers. “Those are mirrormills, coated with a reflective film of aja crystal. They catch and split the magic energy inherent in sunlight, then store it in luminous jars, so that Elantyans can use the power wherever it is needed.”
    “Like solar energy cells?” Gwen said.
    Lyssandra touched her arm, took the concept from Gwen’s mind, then pursed her lips. “An inaccurate comparison, but useful enough. You must adapt to the fact that everything in Elantya functions differently from the way to which you are accustomed.”
    “I may not know how it works,” Vic said, “but I bet I could figure it out.”
    Gwen noticed that all of the buildings were made of stone or whitewashed bricks, with many crystals and metal supports. “I don’t see much wood.”
    “We are a small island at the center of all crystal-door trade routes. Although we have access to stone, sand, and some metalores, as well as crystals that we can either mine or grow from natural elements, wood is scarce here. Our ships and docks come from other worlds where wood is plentiful. Because so much of what Elantya needs must be imported through the crystal doors, we take great care to put everything to its wisest use.”
    “I guess that would have an effect on architectural styles.”
    Men, women, and children from many races walked past them, dressed in colorful costumes that originated from diverse cultures. Different worlds? Different universes? Gwen couldn’t deny the strangeness all around her.
    Some people rode in low wheeled carts with colorful sails flapping out in front of them. Catching the breezes, the sail carts glided along the smooth streets, picking up speed down the slopes and then rolling uphill. Overhead, kite gliders carried one or two passengers, who pedaled to turn the broad scoop-shaped propellers.
    From what Gwen could see, some of the “magic” was based on physics rather than sorcery,