The tunnels seemed to stretch on forever. Even worse, the turns went not only left and right, but up and down as well. By some biological mechanism, Joan could feel that they had made an overall descent. Then, with one more downward turn, they emerged into another world.
Joan had always envisioned an underwater city as a spacious metropolis gleaming in refracted sunlight. The city of Alorda, in contrast, received very little sunlight. Embedded into the side of a shadowy trench, its flat disk-shaped structures lay on top of each other like shelves. Oddly, the layout of these buildings looked haphazard, chaotic even. In fact, some of them tilted and drooped from their sideways foundations as if succumbing to gravity. Pale anemones filled every available crevice, further adding to the crowded feeling of the place.
Here and there, a mermaid or merman would glide by, carrying lanterns of some sort of glowing substance. Many seemed busy with maintaining their dwellings, scraping off stray mollusks, sweeping sand off their roofs, even rearranging anemones. From what she could see, Joan considered it a lot of trouble for such a disorderly cityscape.
Admittedly, Alorda had one remarkable characteristic: its color. From deep violet to emerald green, every building boasted a different hue. The captive mermaid found herself gaping at the sheer variety.
Her admiration did not go unnoticed. "A newcomer to Alorda, I see."
Joan nodded.
"Do you not have cities where you come from?"
Somehow, Joan felt hesitant to reveal her origin. She decided to play the awestruck tourist. "Well, certainly nothing like this."
"Then I'm guessing you're not from Aleutica." At her expression of confusion, the guard clarified, "That is the closest city north of here. What region are you from, if I may ask?"
"Um, somewhere far away." The mermaid dropped her gaze. "Very, very far away."
Intrigued with her vague answer, the guard peered at Joan closely. "The plains, then? You really don't look like it." His expression turned slightly aghast. "Have you come all the way from the Pelagios Zones?"
"Um, look, I'd rather not talk about it, okay?"
Thankfully, the guard withdrew his questions. To Joan's surprise, he looked utterly embarrassed. "My apologies, miss. I should not have pried. If you wish to forget past hardships, you should not be forced to recall them."
Having no clue what he was talking about, Joan remained silent.
Soon, they turned to enter a particularly large turquoise building. Inside, more guards talked to the first for a bit before letting him and his prisoner pass. Joan glanced behind her at the door as she was led deeper inside. Every minute seemed to bring her farther and farther from the world she knew.
