...The Lost City...
Sarra tried to change the subject after that the mood became suddenly dark when they talked about children's sacrifices In the Incas empire.
- Come on children, I have a much more interesting story to tell, do you want to hear it?
- Yes, we want.
- Alright, listen to me carefully. Once upon a time, there were people who have superpowers, they were called monsters.
- MONSTERS! Do they eat children?
- No, Gabrielle, they look just like humans and maybe kinder, but they were called monsters because they were very powerful, that's all.
Gabrielle's eyes became very excited:
- CAN THEY FLY?
- Yeah, some of them can fly and some can move at the speed of light...
Replied Sarra while looking at Aaron and smiling.
Aaron didn't seem pleased when Sarra started talking about the monsters. He leaned and whispered at her:
- Why are you telling this to that child? You will make her scared.
- Look at her face, does she look scared?
Gabrielle was so curious to hear more about those monsters.
- Did those monsters have children?
- Of course, they do. They have normal children, just like you, but when they turn eighteen, they start to change until they reach twenty. And that's when they become monsters.
- How did they do that?
- Well, they have a magical stone that gives them missions to complete. As soon as they succeed, they become powerful and invincible.
- HOW WONDERFUL! ARE THE MONSTERS EXIST, FOR REAL?
- What do you want? Do you want them to exist for real?
- Of course, I do...I wish I can see one of them.
- What will you do if you see someone?
- Well, if...if that person had superpowers. I will ask him to make me fly and take me to my mother.
Everyone's eyes became teary when they heard such a painful answer. Especially Laila, her heart ached and she couldn't hold her tears back. Dylan held her hand:
- I will always be with you. You know that, right?
Laila leaned on him and buried her face in his chest so no one could see her crying face.
Sarra gave Gabrielle a bare of chocolate:
- The land of monsters is real, when you grow up you can go and visit it.
Gabrielle looked very happy:
- REALLY! I CAN MEET THEM.
- Yeah, you can even ask someone to make you fly, but you won't be able to see your mother because she is not in the sky.
- Then, where is she?
Sarra put her hand on Gabrielle's chest:
- She is right here, in your heart. When you close your eyes you will see her anytime you want.
Aaron couldn't handle hearing that conversation any longer. He stood up to cut it.
- She heard enough. It is too late, the children must sleep...
- Yeah, come on girls, let's sleep...
Everyone tried to rest for a bit before continuing their journey. Except for Aaron, he couldn't sleep. All he was thinking about was his family.
" I hope they are fine...Diana ...I miss you, my love. For the past ten years, I got used to her presence around me, but now I feel so empty without her. I wish she is by my side...I can't wait to go back and see her again. "
At dawn, they packed their things and continued their trip to the top. After a couple of hours, they finally reached the lost city of the Inca.
Dylan, Aaron, Sarra, and Laila stood up for a moment to watch the amazing scenery:
- Wow, the city is very big!
The man started talking while Gabrielle translated his words for them:
- Machu Picchu is situated above a bow of the Urubamba River, which surrounds the site on three sides, where cliffs drop vertically for 450 meters (1,480 ft) to the river at their base. The area is subject to morning mists rising from the river. The location of the city was a military secret, and its deep precipices and steep mountains provided natural defenses. The Inca Bridge, an Inca grass rope bridge, across the Urubamba River in the Pongo de Mainique, provided a secret entrance for the Inca army.
The city sits in a saddle between the two mountains Machu Picchu and Huayna Picchu, with a commanding view down two valleys and a nearly impassable mountain at its back. It has a water supply from springs that cannot be blocked easily. The hillsides leading to it were terraced, to provide more farmland to grow crops and to steepen the slopes that invaders would have to ascend. The terraces reduced soil erosion and protected against landslides. Two high-altitude routes from Machu Picchu cross the mountains back to Cusco, one through the Sun Gate, and the other across the Inca bridge.
Dylan was writing the information he was hearing.
" The gate of sun! I must check it as well. "
- Come on, I will show you what is in the city...
The group started their tour around the city while the man kept explaining to them.
- The architecture is adapted to the mountains. Approximately 200 buildings are arranged on wide parallel terraces around an east-west central square. The various compounds, called Kansas, are long and narrow to exploit the terrain. Sophisticated channeling systems provided irrigation for the fields. Stone stairways set in the walls allowed access to the different levels across the site. The eastern section of the city was probably residential. The western, separated by the square, was for religious and ceremonial purposes. This section contains the Torreón, the massive tower, which may have been used as an observatory.
Dylan knew that it will take them all day long to walk around such a big city.
- Thank you, sir, for showing us all of this, but we are interested in the temple of the sun...Can you show it to us?