A Tiered Redoubt

I descended from the sill toward the perimeter of the room to survey lower elevations. An imposing bastion of glazed terra-cotta rose from the floorboards, housing a dense thicket of green stalks. I approached the fluted rim of the drainage saucer at its foundation. Planting my right foot onto the baked clay ledge, I shifted my weight forward to verify its load-bearing capacity. It bore my mass without a single tremor. I set the point of my golden blade against the fired clay wall, checking the concentric ridges baked into its surface. A miniature fortress of earth and stone, perfectly sound.