《Distant Leaps to Circinus》 Prologue
Chapter song: Memory Distorted
The sound of something hitting outside reverberates through the dark room. A door opened briefly then closes as a man steps inside. He walks up to the only desk and chair and feels for the on switch on the computer, like the many times he had done before. A small monitor intermittently flickers on when he presses the button. A constant scramble of computer jargon slowly scrolled by as it booted. The low hum of electricity from the screen always gave him a headache, it was much louder than what others would think. He squinted hard to make sure he could see the small worn label of the button named ¡°REC¡±. Once he pressed the button a sign behind him lit up in a bright red with the words ¡°Room in Use¡±. The room was plastered in red from the signs light, contrary to the sky blue paint that covered the walls. The only door that linked the room to the outside hallway, had a faded brown and red stain on it. Although it taunted him every time he was here, he tried his best to ignore it, and with it the cause of why it was there. With a sigh and scratch to his wild beard, he promptly sat down in the worn out chair in front of the table. A silver outstretched microphone was centimeters away from touching his lips. The man sat in silence for a moment, staring at the flickering screen, watching the ¡°Time Elapsed¡± text, tick forward. It soon went past 3 minutes, then 6, then 12. It felt like time wasn¡¯t as precious as before. Finally, he cleared his throat, coughed a bit into his hand, then sighed once more.The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation. With a deep inhale and a slow breath out, he tried to present the words stuck behind in his throat. ¡°I''m sure you all have been waiting. If anyone even sees this. But... I admit it... I...¡± He choked on his words and pushed back from the desk. ¡°Ah hell why do I even do this.¡± He stood up quickly, but a quick pain shot through his head. Enough for him to change his mind, he plopped back down into his chair. A loud metal bang reverberated through the room as he slammed a fist on the table. ¡°DAMMIT! I did want to kill myself! Just like all the others did! There, I fucking said it! I''m no hero. Not even in the slightest! I''m weak! But the voice... That sweet melodic voice keeps whispering in my head. Telling me things. Constantly leading me around this damned metal bucket. Always telling me that They need me... The voice doesn''t stop there. It shows me these damn visions and signs of what''s going on below. While I sit up here, helplessly. Those images kept me going though. I thought I could be useful in some way. Someone needed me. They Needed me. Even while I endlessly drift out here. I can''t see them though, but they can''t see me either. Still... We can connect somehow.¡± When a slight migraine brought waves of pain to his head, he tried to vigorously rub the pain away. ¡°Every single damn time¡­ The voice, I''m not sure if it has some kind of gender, sex or some kind of weird alien hocus pocus that make it sound so¡­ Beautiful. What I am sure of though, is that this is some kind of game for them, or, some kind of¡ª¡± The sound of an alarm rang outside the door behind him. An orange text with the words ¡®Low Power¡¯ flashed while it scrolled around the top edges of the room. Another sigh escaped his mouth. ¡°I could have sworn I fixed those damn solar chargers... I guess I''ve got another pain in the ass to deal with.¡± He pressed the button labeled ¡®save¡¯, turned off the monitor and stood up from his chair. He grabbed a white dirt stained coat off of the floor and walked over to the door, gripping it¡¯s cold handle. When he looked back at the monitor briefly, his reflection was all he saw. Brown hair with traces of gray and tired green eyes. ¡°I''m getting too old for this... When will it end?¡± [Author: Enjoy the journey.] Music Music Core *20200130 Music playlist is now private* I wanted to make a visual representation and have people enjoy music, art, and interaction with the story. That plan is a ways off, so just the story is produced and posted at the moment. One day I hope to make a full-fledged kinetic novel for people to enjoy. Below is music that is made just for this story. Feel free to listen to them while reading for a bit more atmosphere. You can check this chapter or the Soundcloud link every few months for more music. Enjoy!Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions.
Main Theme: Distant Leaps to Circinus
Whole Playlist: The Unlighted | Playlist
Inspirational: Children of Circinus
Ambient: Memory Distorted
Sad: The Unlighted | Time gone through loops
Believing: The Unlighted | Beleive in the Colors
Action: The Unlighted | Trapped
Chapter 1
Chapter Song Distant leaps to Circinus | Happenings
Zeais felt like he had made an awful decision, the rumbles of his stomach was a clear complaint, to him forgetting to bring food. I¡¯m an idiot. Seven hours of walking and I didn''t think to bring something to trade with... That sample of lizard meat wasn''t bad though, I could probably use that back home. Zeais rubbed his stomach as he walked down endless looking dirt road. His head was on a swivel, looking for any tree that may have bore fruit. Unfortunately the plains were the only surrounding scenery, aside from the few regular trees here and there. The only food he saw was grass, he wasn¡¯t nearly desperate enough to stoop that far. When he gazed into the sky, he could see neither the sky nor the clouds, all he could see was the same blanket of gray that covered the world around him. At least it¡¯s nice out, this wasn¡¯t a bad break at all. The air around him filled his nose, it smelled of fresh grass and dirt. The sound of nature was his favorite, excluding the cries of animals in hiding. The feeling of peace was a rarity whenever he stayed home, he¡¯d much rather be out than help take care of the smaller children. I¡¯m glad we got enough to live off for the next week though, it really hel- Zeais suddenly stopped in his tracks. An unimaginable occurrence for him would usually be a left out cart of food or a random pile of weapons. What he saw happening in front of his eyes though, was on a completely different scale. Is that? The color¡­ yellow? It was strange. It was the strangest sight he had ever seen. The only colors he knew of were the eyes of children, but never once did he see it elsewhere. ¡°What?¡± He shook a hand in front of his eyes, confirming if it was an illusion. He was awestruck, it was real. What he was seeing was indeed color. A wave of light was moving through the sky. Neither straight or thick in width, it stretched against the entire sky, as far as he could see. ¡°How is this possib-¡± A feeling like he had been struck in the back of the head caused him to fall to his knees. As if the air was knocked out of his body, he let out deep gasp and grabbed his chest. With a grimace, he turned around slowly trying to look for the reason why, but he could see none. His vision blurred the more he tried to find the answer and his reasoning became more muddled. What? Why is- My head- Panicking, he attempted to stand, but the ground beneath him felt less stable than when he was just walking. Is-Is the ground shaking? Wha-? Breathing became harder the more he tried to control it. An earthquake was all he could think of, but it didn¡¯t explain the brain bursting pain he felt in his head. The only sound he could hear, was a loud rumble, he thought his eardrums would rupture. His thoughts were cut in half when another large burst of pain assaulted more areas of his head. Unable to bear the pain, he tried to crawl forward, looking for something to rest on. As the world twisted and shook, the faint outlines of something that looked sturdy, sat in front of him. Slowly, one hand after another, he crawled on hands and knees. Soon even crawling was a hassle, his legs felt like they were made of lead. Dragging himself along seemed to be the only thing left. Foot after foot, he painstakingly gripped whatever he could touch with his palm and pulled. He wanted to stop his pain. Everything hurt, but the most painful was the migraine. He couldn¡¯t help but want to rub it away. With one hand on his head and another that dragged him along, he felt like he was so close to reaching a point of rest. What he didn¡¯t expect, was the feeling of falling, as he was mid pull. The sudden drop made him flip forward, he shot his hands out in spurprise to try and break his fall. With closed eyes he didn¡¯t even want to attempt to see where he¡¯d land. The landing was of little concern to him, he only wanted it to be quick and painless. To his surprise, it was rather short. When he opened his eyes, the first thing he saw was the sea of yellow lines that spread across the sky. Laying on his back against some type of rock, he was stuck, and could only watch the world overhead. As if he were looking at the ripples of a puddle, he couldn¡¯t help but gaze into mystery unfolding above. The more he stared, the less pain he felt. The longer he tried to burn the color of light into his memory, the more the sounds of the world disappeared around him. Low and faint, he heard an inexplicably clear voice. The words were softly spoken but he couldn¡¯t understand the meaning behind them. It wasn¡¯t a conversation though, in fact, it wasn¡¯t even formed into coherent sentences. When he tried to listen more, the words sounded like gibberish and more drawn out that a normal person would talk. Singing? But, who would- Abruptly, voices of dozens of people screaming into his ear jerked him from his lull thoughts. He tried plugging his ears, but it made no difference, the voices still pierced his eardrums. An urge to grab anything, anything at all, gripped his mind. The feeling of immense pain I his head and the wild shake of the world, rattled his brain. His heart was racing a thousand miles an hour, his panic was at his limit. I can¡¯t¡­ I can¡¯t¡­ I can¡¯t¡­ It hurts. It hurts so much! I- I- His hand stretched out into the air, he looked at it, as he reached toward the sky. The moment he couldn¡¯t stretch any farther, a sudden sensation gripped his hand. There was nothing he could physically see, that was touching him. He tried to pull back, but his hand would not return to him. A sudden tug from his hand raised him up slightly. His eyes widened with fear as nothingness pulled him toward the unknown. The last thing he could see was one last large ripple of yellow light pass by, before lost consciousness. ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª The feeling of dreaming usually felt strange, but what he saw, was the most vivid dream he could ever imagine. Visions of people he did not know, stood in massive groups, they all stared into the sky with wide eyes. What are they looking at? He tried looking behind for what they were so shocked about, but when he tried, a sudden migraine ensued. Trying to peer back was impossible, it felt like his neck would be snapped if the more he turned. The feeling of his migraine felt different. The pain never came from his temples or on the sides of his head, it was more ¡°Inside?¡± You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story. It feels like, a warning? I don¡¯t understand? What is this? Zeais gave into the bidding of his head and looked forward. The blurry cloud of vision in front of him, looked as if he were only staring out of a foggy mirror, but there was no glass. When he tried reaching his hand toward the people, he could feel nothing. Does this just stretch forever? It seems so, real. Suddenly, their eyes widened and a couple of people stumbled backward. Others turned around completely and began to run. Few just stood there with their arms raised, as if calling out to whatever was in the sky. Are those people¡­ praying? Within an instant, dust and what looked like debry covered their bodies. The cloud of gray consumed the surrounding structures and soon filled the entirety of the glass like screen he looked through. ¡°What the¡ª I¡¯ve never seen those people. What were those clothes?! What were they looking at?! I know theres someone there! I can just feel it!¡± Zeais¡¯s began hurriedly searching for something, looking wildly for any type of exit. Every time he tried to look past his shoulders, he took on the same pain as he did before. Movement of his shoulders was impossible, it was as if there was someone holding him down. ¡°What happened to them?! Where is this?!¡± Nothing answered him. As he sat in the darkness, he couldn¡¯t tell what drove him to want answers. More than anything he wanted to know where he was and why he was there. The feeling of his temples pounding his brain was the last thing he remembered. Contrary to his situation, Zeais could not shake the yawn that escaped his mouth. His interest in figuring out why he was there, was fading. A wave of sleepiness began to eat at him. Trying to keep his eyelids open proved more difficult each second. The last thing he could see before letting go, was the gray fog disappear in front of him and be presented with an enormous inferno of orange. The-- Sun? Zeais¡¯s thoughts collapsed, the only sight he could see was darkness. His consciousness was still present. Moving was impossible, so was opening his eyes or speaking. The only thing he could do was listen. There was no sound, except for the quit mumblings of an incoherent voice. Gibberish, is what his mind translated it to. At the time, he had no opinion on the matter, his thoughts were too muddled. He did have one thing pointed out to him from the mariad of voices, it was the word, ¡®Selection¡¯. ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª Droplets of rain slowly pelted his face and body. He didn¡¯t react to anything until the loud crack of thunder pierced his ears. His eyes quickly shot open in surprise. Having forgot where he was, he did a quick body check to make sure nothing had happened to him while he slept. When he checked his side, a sharp pain shot through him. ¡°What?¡± He uttered quietly. He put a hand down to give himself a more comfortable position. The first thing he felt was his hand sink into a pool of water. The more he moved, the more he could feel the weight of the clothing that weighted him down. I¡¯m an idiot. Now I¡¯m soaked and hurt, because of a¡­ nap? He felt around for anything that may of stuck him in his sleep, and to no surprise, he felt the sharp edge of a stone sticking out right next to him. Of course. Why would I lay next to something like that? He lifted his shirt slightly to confirm. A clean line of blood slowly dripped horizontally from his wound. A sigh escaped his mouth. He was too hungry to feel like thinking about finding a way to cover his cut. He felt his pockets, looking for the one thing that could help him until he reached town, herb wrap. He wanted to reach for his pockets, but he soon remembered he had none to aid him. His body suddenly lurched forward when a gust of wind dipped down into the hole. Dirt and droplets of water swirled around him. It was futile to try and look anywhere until the sudden draft died down. Once it did, he paid more attention to the surrounding area from where he was. His ears picked up on the sounds of close and distant thunder. The rustle of trees and nearby shrubbery was loud enough. To include the curtain of rain approaching him, it felt like too much stimuli to try and pay attention to it all. Cold wind once again traveled through the narrow hole and assaulted his skin. Shivers crawled down his spine and rendered him immobile briefly. I should have paid more attention to the weather. He coughed into his hands and stood up. Just as tall as the hole he slept in, the draft from the top rustled his brown hair wildly. He could already feel the storm begin to pick up as small amounts of dirt and rain flew over his head. I¡¯ve been through worse. Zeais sighed. But still¡­ I have to walk through this¡­ Once he let out his complaints internally, he grabbed the ledge to lift himself out. When he did so, he could feel the cut on his side throb with every inch he lifted himself. It¡¯s not even that deep, why does it hurt so much? I feel like I had some other more pressing pain though. Pulling himself out of the hole was not difficult, in mere seconds he was already free. He felt relieved that the hole wasn¡¯t deeper, any more and a small cut wouldn¡¯t be the only thing to worry about. The rain was getting heavier by the second, he needed to move. Preceding to walk toward the road, a large gust of wind pushed dirt into his eyes. ¡°Gah!¡± He rubbed his eyes vigorously until he could see. ¡°I need to get somewhere safe or else I might end up sick. Even worse, I could-¡± A flicker of light bobbed up and down slightly, far ahead of him. Red? N-No, is that, orange? It¡¯s not the same thing like before. Is it a child, maybe an animal, or an... Abnormal? His body tensed and his heart felt like a steam engine. He didn¡¯t expect to run into anything with the low sightings of animals and monstrosities, he felt dumb for not even bringing a weapon. Due to his complacency for having a week off, he may have to fight something that could kill. Zeais, balled his hands into tight fists, ready to fight whatever or whoever, would walk through a storm. Chapter 2
Chapter Song Distant leaps to Circinus | Happenings (Foley Constant)
An orange-hued dot slowly bobbed up and down as it approached him. It was a color close to a Cosmos flower. Blankets of rain obstructed his already limited vision, but he could see that the bead of light in front of him was also affected. There was a lot of sway in its movements and the occasional dim meant they were blinking. Those guys don¡¯t blink that often, maybe just a child? They would have done something by now. There was nowhere for him to hide, aside from a small tree, but it wasn¡¯t thick enough to conceal him. I guess I¡¯ll just have to talk to them. With that thought in mind, he was ready to try and yell, but the overbearing sound of thunder and rain was too much. ¡°I can¡¯t even hear my self,¡± he said aloud, confirming what he¡¯d just said. Fine, maybe they can make out a hand signal from there. He raised a hand into the air and motioned for them to stop. When he did so, the two orange dots stopped moving and dimmed a bit. Are they squinting? With a wave of a hand, he attempted to make a friendly gesture. It was a useless effort though since everything in front of him was a gray mess. Trying to discern anything outside his range was futile. Whoever they are, they know I¡¯m here now. One of the eyes disappeared. A long range signal? Huh. Not all that friendly. One eye open in a situation like this could only mean one thing. ¡°Okay, got it.¡± He mumbled aloud. Zeais looked directly into their eye¡¯s, focusing solely on the inner light that seemed to be looking at his. A girls voice as clear as day began to speak, her words resonated within his mind. *I almost didn¡¯t notice you* she said. Well, that''s hurtful. A voice that would''ve never been heard so far away and in such heavy rain, continued. *Are you, abnormal?* Zeais had to convey his own words too, he imposed his words through the faint light of his eyes. *No, why?* Zeais asked. You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story. *I felt someone watching me while I slept a while ago. They¡¯re always out there, watching.* He could hear a slight hostility in her voice. Sleep? Out here? Who would do something like that¡­ *Sorry, no, they are just gray and I don¡¯t have any cracks in my eyes. I haven¡¯t seen any other children so far, especially Abnormals.* *Is that so¡­ You talk normal enough.* He could hear the hostility leave her voice, she sounded more approachable than before. *If you¡¯re on this road, did you come from Don¡¯te?* A wave of relief washed over him, she didn¡¯t seem like she meant harm. *No, I only came from the forest near there, to visit the merchants.* She said nothing for a moment, a blink was the only thing signifying she was still there. Well, this is awkward. *If you don¡¯t mind me asking, do you have any herb wrap? I have a cut and need to get going so I don¡¯t get sick.* Her silence continued for three more seconds until she broke eye contact. The brightness of her orange pupils returned soon after. *I have enough to give you if you¡¯re hurt. You didn¡¯t carry any on you?* Zeais checked his pockets, he wanted to make sure he didn¡¯t have any in hiding. *Nope, I had some earlier in the day, but I¡¯m sure I dropped it long ago.* *Hmm, I see. I¡¯ll bring you a bit then if you don¡¯t mind.* *Of course not.* *Alright..* She started to move toward him, her orange glow growing bigger with every step. If he had to guess, she may have been about 100 meters away. He felt like judging distance color was a lot easier than before. Even a couple of miles away was easy to spot if the other children were coordinated enough when they tested it. While Zeais waited for her to approach him, he couldn¡¯t help but remember the other colors of children he¡¯d seen before. The ones he had trouble with were shades closer to black, but that was hard for most children. I wonder if Eloy is doing good? His fearless friend popped into his mind for a second. He didn¡¯t think about him long, before he knew it, the girl was close enough to where he make out her silhouette. The clothing she wore flapped in the wind, especially the hood that covered her head. The sound of her splashing water was audible and he could hear the droplets of rain hitting her jacket. The girl faded into view for Zeais, like a fish showing itself in murky water. The vivid orange eyes she had, were deep and radiant to Zeais, much brighter than any other child¡¯s eyes he¡¯d seen. Her hair draped over her forehead in a low wild bob. The tips of her hair were deep orange but only looked like a light shade of gray for him. Unable to point out specific features, it was a hassle anytime he wanted to ask questions or needed to point things out. She held a stoic look upon her face as if she were uninterested in anything going on. Not much for expression huh. With her blank look, she held out her hand, holding what he presumed was the herb wrap. The girl looked into his eyes and he stared back. *Here,* She said through word of will. The wrap emitted a faint glow from her clenched fist. Zeais held out his hand and she placed it in his palm. He gave a small nod *Thank you, this helps a lot.* The girl furrowed her brows as if he¡¯d said something strange. She shook her head and looked at him. *We take care of each other, no need to thank me. Adults and abnormal are the only things you can¡¯t trust.* With that statement, she took her leave. Without giving him time to form a thought, she walked passed him, turning into a blurry silhouette as she disappeared into the storm. Zeais could only stare into the gray abyss she walked into with only one thought in mind. Weird. Chapter 3
Chapter Song A simple truth to this world
Zeais turned away from the traveling girl''s direction. He jogged over to a small tree he saw before. It wasn¡¯t much for cover, but it was better to apply the wrap without getting it too wet. He lifted his shirt to see if his cut got any deeper. It doesn''t look that bad... Better safe than sorry. After applying the small strip of wrap, he could feel a bit of heat from the small crystals reacting to his blood. The faint light it gave off, was only a faint shadow to him. Good, I shouldn¡¯t have to worry about that now. Now then, only ten more miles to go. There''s nowhere to really take a break here, the animals would probably kill me if I tried camping out here. Hopefully, I don¡¯t get a fever or something before I get back, I won¡¯t be able to fight anything like that¡­ While he searched his brain for a plan, a loud scream rang out in the distance. Immediately, Zeais snapped toward the sound, his heart began to pound from the sudden yell. A man? Someone being attacked? Should I help? The confines of the road were all he could see. With nothing else to look at other than blurry gray walls, he tried to listen for another scream or animals. I don¡¯t hear anything, I don''t see any eyes either. Where did it come from? While he faced the direction of where he thought the yell came from, he heard the sound of water splashing behind him. The sound got closer before he could turn fully, along with a pulse of orange light, he assumed that it was the same girl that he saw only moments ago. Is she running toward the scream? The sound of her ragged breath rushed toward him. Within a few seconds she flew by him, just barely out of sight on the road, she quickly vanished from his sight. How does she know where to go? That scream had to at least be 1000 or more meters away¡­ Being able to see farther would really help at times like this. Whatever. I could probably follow the sound of her footsteps, but do I really want to help though? Another scream echoed distantly from the open plains. ¡°Ahh! Fine!¡± He yelled at himself. Zeais looked down the road and sighed. His shoes weren¡¯t the best fit for running in mud, but it would have to do given the situation. He started to run after the girl''s footsteps. Speed was something he had confidence in, even if he couldn¡¯t see, his legs would take him somewhere. The rain blinded him even more but her footsteps were a good enough clue to navigate with. After a while of occasionally losing her footsteps to thunder and rain, he eventually saw her outline. The hood she wore no longer covered her head and bounced around with every step she took. A little more speed was all it took for him to catch up to her side. The girl looked at him, with the same stoic look she had before. Her hair was soaked and water dripped down her face. She looked into his eyes, customary for children like them. *I¡¯m sure you heard the scream too, there¡¯s a marker in the distance.* she said to him, her mouth unmoving. Dang. I didn¡¯t think of that. Not that I would have seen much anyways. *I didn¡¯t see it, but I heard the scream, how far do you think it is?* The girl looked into the sky, a pillar of light danced in a circle with colors of purple and green. She looked back at Zeais with an almost irritated look. *About 1000 meters.* Zeais felt a sense of accomplishment. Looks like I was right, he gave himself a mental pat on the back. That''s a bit far, we might make it. When he gazed into the sky, he saw nothing but a very faint contrast that would have been too difficult to see on his own. This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work. As he looked back at the girl, he couldn¡¯t help but wonder why she didn''t speak with her mouth. It was strange to him, considering they had to look at each other while running. She¡¯s a bit strange but doesn''t seem like a bad person. Another scream rang out from the direction of the marker, but it did not contain the deep shriek of a man''s voice. It was instead, the voice of a young child. After hearing the high pitched cry, the girl and Zeais began to pick up their pace. The girl cut off from the road and ran through the plains, Zeais followed suit. Farther in front of them was a small patch of trees, a brief flash of light pulsed from the direction. The young girl next to him saw the flash and narrowed her gaze to where it appeared. He wished he could see farther, but her expression was good enough to guess what was going on. As the children ran through the wet grass and slick mud, Zeais had trouble keeping his footage straight. I can feel the mud slipping into my shoes¡­ After running for another minute through the plains, the girl abruptly stopped in front of Zeais, a small patch of trees was straight ahead. Zeais stopped as well and looked at her, confused. She stooped down into a low crouch and pulled Zeais down to with a tug to his shirt. He got pulled behind a nearby rock, he guessed it was for cover. After he was forcefully squatted down, a loud crack sound came from ahead. Has to be something dangerous. What is it? The only details he could see out was three vague shadows. The loud crack was a man swinging an ax, which had gotten lodged into a nearby tree. The man tried pulling the Axe free from the tree''s bark, but he seemed to have trouble removing it. The male adult had skinny arms and his clothing consisted of plenty of tears and rips. On his pants leg, was a gaping hole that showed signs of char on the ends. Underneath it, his skin was blistered and red. The cause of the man''s damage had to the only dangerous creature. A silver sheep, shaking its head and grunting at the man, white puffs of smoke blowing from its nostrils. Zeais could only listen in on the events that happened in front of him. Hmm too far, with those sounds though it''s obviously some type of animal. She should know what''s going on... As he was about to put a hand on the girl¡¯s shoulder and ask for details, a cry from the young boy they heard earlier rang out. It peeled him and the girl toward his direction. A glow of purplish-green light surrounded the boy¡¯s small body, as he lay on his hands and knees looking at the sheep. One rough crystal sat on the ground next to him, slowly pulsing with colors. It¡¯s light dimmed as time went on. The silver sheep was pointing in his direction, stamping its feet. His small eyes looked for a way out. The boy''s met with the children hidden nearby. Zeais could see the boy¡¯s yellow pupils looking in his direction. He couldn''t make out what the boy was doing. Is he scared? I can''t hear his words. From the corner of his eye, a finger comes up to the girl''s lips and she made a shushing gesture. She was looking in the child¡¯s direction and pulled out a knife from her coat. Was he about to say something?! Phew, thankfully she caught that. She¡¯s armed too! I¡¯d say I¡¯m lucky I wasn¡¯t alone when this happened. Rushing it wouldn¡¯t go as well as the times before. The man had finally freed his Axe from the bark of the tree. ¡°Don¡¯t you touch that boy you damn sheep!¡± The man yelled as he charged at the sheep. A few inches away, the sheep quickly dodged without even a glance from behind. His ax missed and flew with enough momentum to get lodged into the ground. Aggravated, the sheep snorted and shook its body. Large amounts of light wool swirled in the wind and stuck to the man. With another angry grunt, the animals wool ignited and set the surrounding area on fire. A desperate look on his face, the man tried to pat off the pieces of burning wool that stuck to him. The wind only added more and the rain only made them stay much longer. A bright flash of light lit up the sky. Zeais only saw the quick pulse of gray, that was the man''s body, being set on fire from an explosion. Chapter 4
Chapter Song Children of Circinus (Chorus Ending)
The explosion from the Silver Sheep lit the sky with blinding orange light. A quick yelp escaped the man''s mouth when his body was propelled backward. The blast knocked him back into the very same tree his Axe got stuck in, a brief thud was heard and soon after his body slumped over. The residue of the fire wool rained from the sky, extinguished one after another until there was none left. The sheep¡¯s horns reflected light from its tiny nearby flames, showing it¡¯s fierce elongated pupils. It turned away from the unconscious man and looked toward the direction of the quivering child. The purplish-green haze of light around the crystal was faded and looked like it would cut out at any moment. With his small yellow pupils, the boy looked the animal in the eyes and made a whimper. Step by step, the sheep walked forward, approaching the small child. Air escaped from its nostrils, warmed air making puffs of smoke, it put it¡¯s hostility up for display. A large gust of wind came from behind the children, hidden behind the rock. The Silver Sheep stopped in its tracks. It lifted it''s nose into the air and looked upwind, straight toward the girl and Zeais hidden behind the rock. The Sheep moved side to side, trying to get a look behind the rock without getting too close. As soon as the saw the Sheep was aware of their direction, the two of them moved over to hide. Why now. We need to move, I don¡¯t want to end up as chard meat on my week off. Zeais looked at the girl, who seemed tense. ¡°Hey,¡± He put a hand to her shoulder. ¡°Any ideas?¡± Her eyes were wide for a second, but she quickly lowered them and sighed. ¡°Can you go around the rock and distract it?¡± Her eyes looked into his. ¡°We might be able to get the sheep off guard.¡± She finally spoke, huh. But out of all the things to say. And a Sheep no less. It¡¯s most likely silver too, they''re the only ones that ever attack like that. ¡°And then what? I don¡¯t have any weapons if it comes charging at me.¡± ¡°Here.¡± She presented him with a wet muddied stone. ¡°Throw this at it, you don¡¯t need to hit it, but it should be surprised when I try and throw my knife at it.¡± Well, it¡¯s not like its that bad of a plan. Hitting them from far away is pretty much the only thing that works, but a rock¡­ ¡°All right, let''s do it then.¡± Zeais grabbed the rock from her hand. ¡°On the count of three, I¡¯ll go this way.¡± The girl shook her head in agreeance. Both of them went to their respective sides and readied themselves for action. They looked at each other in the eyes, their pupils glowed slightly. *One.* A brief sound of thunder cracked through the air. *Two.* Gusts of wind blew from behind them. *Three!* They both turned their heads and ran sparsely out into the open. The Sheep stepped back, rearing its head at their sudden movements. Zeais only needed to do one thing, at least draw the Sheep''s attention. The only problem was how far he could see. I only need a small hint. He was already more than a few yards from the rock where he started. At least snort or something. I just need something... With no way to tell whether or not if it was even looking in his direction, a taunt was all he could think of. ¡°Hey! Hey! Hey! Hey!¡± A brief flicker of flame came from in the sheep''s body. That¡¯s where you are. I can see your light Mr. Sheep. Like winding up a pitch, he brought the rock from behind him and with all his strength, chucked the rock in the direction he saw the contrast. The rock sped through the air as fast as his small arms allowed. Unfortunately, the Sheep saw it coming and backed away from the rock as it lost momentum. It made a quick Baa to his efforts, but it''s noise ended quickly when the rock ricocheted off another rock on the ground. The small stone bounced in the direction of the Sheep''s face, which it was not expecting. A loud animalistic shriek came from the sheep as the rock hit its eye. Zeais could tell he hit his mark from the noise it made. I actually hit the sheep? Wow, I might actually be great! The Sheep, with only one eye open and the other bleeding, began to back away. it let out several deep Baas to ward off the children. The girl stood on the other side of the sheep. She presented her blade to the sheep as she kept a low stance in case. The Silver Sheep looked in both directions, with both children to its sides, it flared up another field of flames around its body. Its flames discharged a couple of times briefly and droplets of blood began to run down its face. It stamped its feet angrily, kicking up splashes of mud around its feet. Come on, just go! I don¡¯t have much else to fight with¡­ With a wild and crazed eye, the sheep backed away and began to run in the direction of the small boy sitting on the ground. ¡°No! He¡¯s going after the child!¡± The girl yelled from afar. ¡°Stop it!¡± Without a second thought, Zeais charged forward to the direction of the boy. For him, the Sheep was nowhere in sight, in reality, he was running right next to it. The sound of fiercely splashing mud and water was close to him. I can hear it! That has to be it. Zeais took off from his path toward the boy and made a B-Line straight for the sheep. The animal''s horns were dead set on striking the crying boy until Zeais¡¯s body crashed into its side. With a good amount of force, he knocked it over and made it tumble onto its side. After being pushed over, it reared its legs to attempt to stand, splashing mud and bits of blood around in the process. In anger, the sheep sparked up more of its wool, but its flames were weaker than before, fizzling out seconds later. If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. Cries from the sheep pierced Zeais''s ears, the sound that the sheep made were almost human-like. It was a sound Zeais heard too often, like a lot of other mammals he''d heard, their suffering was voiced just as loud as his own would be. When he stood up to see why it was shrieking so fiercely, he saw that its leg was bent, in a way that did not look normal. Oh, that¡¯s just-- In its pain, the sheep tried to kick the boy close to it. Wild movements and constant loud Baa¡¯s, it managed to get its leg positioned so it could stand. Zeais no longer wanted to fight the sheep, but if it went after the boy still he was going to protect him. The girl came running up to both him and the sheep. The sheep''s only usable eye looked around erratically to the girl''s presence. Within in no time, it used every bit of strength it had to run. It held up one leg and ran with the other three in a wild pattern, straight for the open plains. Zeais watched as it brushed past the trees and disappeared from his sight. ¡°What did you do to it?¡± The girl ran up to his side. ¡°Didn¡¯t you only throw a rock?!¡± ¡°I did, but I¡¯m sure it broke its leg when it fell. Didn¡¯t look good for it.¡± The girls face had an odd expression that Zeais couldn''t make out. Is she upset? With a sigh, she placed the knife back into her coat, in a spot that Zeais thought was not ideal. Don¡¯t place the knife near your stomach, you idiot. About to voice his opinion aloud, the sound of small puddles splashing grabbed his attention. The small boy who was sitting nearby ran up to the man who was sprawled out next to the tree. The boy fell to his knees near him, his small hands trembling over him, he looked like he was unsure if he could touch him. The girl approached him with a worried look on her face. She stood behind the boy and pinched his cheek from behind. A quick yelp of surprise and pain came from the boy, he turned to see her looking into his eyes. A slight glow from the center of his iris appeared when they looked at each other. Tears began to fall down his face. The girl calmly wrapped the boy¡¯s neck with herb wrap, not saying a word and a faint smile on her face. Once she wrapped the boy''s neck, she bent down and brought her head to the man''s chest. ¡°He¡¯s still breathing, Nova. It¡¯s okay.¡± She stood up and lightly put a hand on his head. ¡°I¡¯ll make sure he gets some help okay? Don¡¯t worry, we have to be strong, right?¡± Quiet sniffles came from the boy, along with tears and drips of snot. The rain that poured over the children was still constant, but not nearly as much as before. Zeais, only watched them from close by, thinking of what to do next. I don¡¯t want to get off track, but¡­ It wouldn¡¯t be right to not offer to help. This girl seems like she knows how to handle little ones, the least I can do is help get the man treated. Zeais looked for signs of the direction he came from. Based on what he saw around him and how long he walked, he got his bearings. We should be near that soup town, I think. If we go that way¡­ Within an hour or two, we could probably get there. It would be faster than going to Don¡¯te or Brights. He walked up to the other two children looking at the man''s condition. ¡°Hey, you two.¡± Zeais interrupted the boy and girl conversing, they both turned to look at him. ¡°Uh, if we hurry we''ll be able to get him to that soup town the quickest.¡± ¡°Soup town? You mean¡­¡± The girl brought a hand to her chin. ¡°Ri-Rigas? I think is what it¡¯s called. The place that''s called ¡°The Town made in a bowl of Soup, right?¡± ¡°That¡¯s the one.¡± Zeais wiped his face of rain. ¡°The storm will only make things worse for the man, so we should do it fast.¡± ¡°I could wrap him in a bit of herb wrap, but I don¡¯t think it will help with something like that.¡± The girl took out a roll of wrap that emitted soft light of all colors. ¡°Since it¡¯s raining though, it should at least soothe it, I think.¡±¡¯ The boy looked at the burned man. ¡°Will we have to carry him?¡± His eyes swirled with enough emotion to almost look like tears. ¡°He looks kind of heavy, we might be able to drag him.¡± She looked around, her eyes stopping at the nearby trees. ¡°They¡¯re small, but there might be enough sticks to make a sled.¡± "Hey, Nova? That''s your name right, little one?" The small boy nodded his head. "Great, nice to meet you, I''m Zeais. Could you look over there for some large sticks? You can even take them from the top of tree''s if you can climb." The small boy wiped his eyes and sniffed up the mucus running down his nose. ¡°I can do that.¡± Zeais could see the bits of determination in the boy¡¯s eyes. "Good! I''ll go look over there then!" Zeais was about to run to the tree he saw, but the sight of the girl taking off her coat stopped him. Revealing her black sweater underneath, she threw her coat onto the ground. He couldn''t think of her name and only stood there bumbling, "Um, uhhh-" The girl looked at him confused. "Eris is my name." ¡°Uh, Eris. Why are you taking off your coat?.¡± ¡°I figured we could use it as a base for the sticks.¡± Good point, but at least say something before you just do that though¡­ She¡¯s almost like Deka¡­ "That makes sense. Do you mind getting a bunch of grass? It sucks that it''s all wet, but it should make it easier to fill your coat. ¡°Mm, sure, I¡¯ve got it. It¡¯s getting a bit dark, we should hurry up.¡± Zeais proceeded with gathering materials. He stopped by the first tree he saw. There was nothing, but small twigs. Taking live branches was something he didn¡¯t want to do, but he began to rip them off anyway. Sorry, it¡¯s for a good reason. The person he was apologizing to was nowhere in sight, but he felt the need to do it. After grabbing a few branches from one tree, he went on to the next couple. A good amount was gathered after a few minutes and he decided it was enough. The other two children were on the ground shaping sticks and grass into the girl''s coat. When he got closer, it looked almost complete, with his bundle it would be enough to make it to the city. They used the final bit of material to finish the sled. A jacket, sticks, and grass to fill gaps were all they could manage. "This should be enough," Zeais said. "now all we need is something to pull him with¡­" Nova dug through the pockets of the man and pulled out three tightly bonded rolls of herb wrap. ¡°We can use this on him!¡± The boy no longer sported a sad look, Zeais thought he seemed to be happy since he was helping out. Eris had a slight smile when she saw Nova present the wrap. ¡°Great, with this much, we can use this for his chest since his back isn¡¯t burned. The rest can hold him down and a bit more can be used around the hood so we can pull him. Sounds like a good idea?¡± Nova''s face lit up with a huge smile. He looks so happy. I wish some of the children at brights were like this¡­ Zeais couldn''t help but smirk from their ingenuity. "I think so! It''s pretty dark now, we should go while we still have light. Be careful too, it''s pretty muddy." To elongate the rope, the children used articles of clothing they didn''t need, to have enough rope for all three of them. Socks, undershirts, and leftover herb wrap were the embodiment of their pulling power. What a waste of wrap, I hope it¡¯s still usable after this. He could see effort wasted from making herb wrap in his mind. Now, we just need to put him on this thing. ¡°Ready to put him on?¡± Zeais asked the two. Eris nodded her head and so did Nova. The three of them took a side, Zeais at his arms, Eris at the legs and Nova in the middle near his waist. Together they counted, ¡°One. Two. Three!¡± Using all their strength, they picked up his body, barely off the ground and painstakingly moved it to the sled only a few feet away. Grunts and moans from the man, as well as the children, came with every step they took. Eris¡¯s face was bright red from straining to keep his legs up, Nova tried his best to grab anywhere on the hips and Zeais¡¯s arms were nearly dead from trying to pull him upwards by the arms. The man''s butt sagged down the most, making it hard for the two on the ends to carry him. Despite the weight being off balance, they managed to get him on top of the sled. ¡°Gah! Finally! My back is killing me!¡± Zeais rubbed his back. "We have a long while to drag him too," Eris said out of breath. Nova only sighed with small ragged breath. The rain still poured and the air was colder than before, Zeais couldn¡¯t help the chills that ran down his spine. I want to go home¡­ Chapter 5
Section Song: Distant leaps to Circinus | Happenings (Foley Constant)
The storm the once roared and flooded the plains was no more than a mild rainfall. With their makeshift sled loaded up, the children were ready to begin their trip to Rigas. Zeais made sure the man was tightly fastened to the sled, while the other two scouted for the plains. Rain obscured their vision, but a faint light far in the distance gave them a good idea of the route they¡¯d travel. Brisk winds rolled over the plains and embraced them in bone-chilling cold. Their clothes were soaked through and their bodies began to shake, crossing their arms barely staved off the cold. Zeais looked at the girl staring off into the distance. She turned around as if she could feel his gaze. An eyebrow raised up on her face with a questioning look. ¡°What is it?¡± she asked with a slight chatter to her voice. ¡°Think we can make it?¡± "I didn''t see any more sheep or any other dangerous animals. I think we might be okay." ¡°Okay, good. Hey Nova!¡± The small boy looked away from his telescope hand. Hm?¡± He said quietly. ¡°Do you mind taking the back of the rope? He¡¯s close to you right?¡± Nova nodded his head, ¡°He¡¯s my uncle.¡± "I see if that''s the case it''s better you look out for him, okay? Just let us know if he looks like he''s in a lot of pain, alright?" ¡°Got it!¡± he said, a smile on his face. ¡°Great¡± Eris said from behind. ¡°Then we should go, its col-¡± ¡°Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaooorrrrrrrr~¡± A startling screech cut the girl''s sentence short, followed by a small wave of vibrations beneath the children''s feet, the hollow echo resounded through the plains. They all froze in place, listening. Another screech sounded out, far off from where the children were. Clouds parted ways, revealing the moon''s light that covered a far off forest. An out of tune stringed instrument was all Zeais could think of whenever he heard their cries. He couldn¡¯t help but scratch his body at the thought of the creature calling out from afar. ¡°We should go¡­¡± Eris said. ¡°They might have just formed.¡± ¡°Mmm, ¡° He murmured as he looked in the distance. ¡°we should have time. Nova, ready to go?¡± The boy''s bright yellow pupils looked worried, but he confidently said, ¡°Yes.¡± Looks like we''re good. Zeais walked up to the sled, catching a glimpse of the man in pain before he grabbed his position on the rope. Nova and Eris followed suit, with her in front and Nova in the back as agreed. The three of them looked at one another, with a nod of agreement, they began to pull the rope as hard as they could. Within the first few tugs, Zeais could feel every pound the man weighed, he was sure the other two had just as hard a time. The slick grass didn''t help them gain footage either, nor did the mud provide any traction. The three of them groaned as they tried pulling on the slick surface without falling. Little by little, they gained distance and with it, more momentum. ¡°He weighs almost as much as a deer!¡± Zeais shouted out loud. "Just keep pulling. There''s a bit of a slope up ahead." Eris said. Just like she said, a small slope had appeared. The sled behind them tilted slightly and the weight gradually lightened. With the help of gravity, the children gained a start that was easier for their bodies to handle. ¡°It doesn¡¯t look there is a lot of uphill, we might get there quickly,¡± Eris divulged from ahead. ¡°Great.¡± Zeais knew it would be a long, tiring trip.
Through long stretches of field and constant rain, the children pulled the man with the hope of reaching Rigas within a few hours. Zeais was in the middle but felt like he had most of the pulling power. They were all much too small for the task, but his arms, in particular, felt more tired than usual. The cold wind brushed his skin as he held the soaking rope. His eyes were watered as well from looking upwind. The other children shared the same expression as him, gritting their teeth and hugging their body tightly, attempting to ward off the chills of nature¡¯s harassment. ¡°It¡¯s really cold.¡± Nova wailed from behind. "The Meteobelisk showed signs of really low temperature and fog. You two aren''t really dressed for the weather," noted Eris. Zeais sighed. He could see his breath when he did so. It only set him up for more disappointment. That they still had a ways to go. How could I fall asleep and let myself- ¡°If only I didn¡¯t sleep¡­¡± Nova said quietly. What? ¡°What do you mean Nov-¡± This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. ¡°You too little one?¡± Eris interjected as she looked back. Nova nodded his head. "Unc Rodrick carried me because I fell asleep. It started raining and he didn''t want me to get sick." Nova''s face had a slightly angry expression. "When I woke up, I was under a tree and Unc was trying to wake me. He had a scary face. Then all the sudden he got hit by a sheep." ¡°That¡¯s really unfortunate Nova, but we¡¯re getting him help now. So you don¡¯t have to make that face,¡± assured Zeais. A wry smile briefly appeared on the boy''s face but disappeared as fast as it came. While Zeais paid attention to the boy''s expressions, he heard softly spoken words ahead of him. "Did you say something?" questioned Zeais as he turned to Eris. ¡°Huh? Um, just talking to myself,¡± she exclaimed as she peered back at him. ¡°I have a strange question though.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡° Is it weird that I also happened to fall asleep earlier? I¡¯ve been thinking about it for a while. I feel really weird about not remembering. ¡± Zeais''s heart skipped a beat. Supernatural stories and ghost stories didn''t chime well with him. It hit too close to comfort for him since he didn''t remember falling asleep either. ¡°I-I think that¡¯s pretty strange. A coincidence?¡± His words came out choppy. ¡°I¡¯m not sure. When I try to think about when I fell asleep¡­ I can¡¯t.¡± This doesn¡¯t sit right¡­ ¡°I don¡¯t really remember either! I just remember waking up!¡± yelled Nova from the back, rain pouring from his face. "That''s¡­ Really strange," Eris said. "Did anything happen to you earlier too?" Zeais¡¯s stomach felt like it was slowly twisting. He searched his mind for information instinctively to her question. As he expected, ¡°I-I don¡¯t¡­Think so.¡± "Hmm," Eris peered into the sky as dark clouds began to part ways and show the outer reaches of space. The moon was not visible, but the trails of light that flowed around it projected large ripples of colors throughout the sky. "Maybe, it''s just a coincidence." Silence fell over the children. Zeais noticed that it didn¡¯t seem like they had no more topics, but the two of them had a slightly pained expression. Relatively, he noticed his head began to hurt the more he searched for an answer to her question. I walked from Don''te Forest. Took a few hours to get halfway. Then nothing. Did I take a nap? Hmmm¡­ Hmm... His attention wained as he tried to think more. Doesn¡¯t make sense. I feel like, I¡¯m missing something important. Zeais held a hand to his forehead. My head is killing me. Why doesn¡¯t it make sense? He looked back at the boy behind him, watching his small yellow eyes scrounge up. After turning away, he felt like there was something odd going on. This feels like those other times¡­ As if I¡¯m the only person in my bubble, but the dot up above always casts its light onto me and I can never remember why I¡¯m there. Is this the same? He massaged his head. As Zeais explored the depths of his mind, he remembered past tales of all sorts. Friends, caretakers, teachers, and people he loved. The nighttime always gave him a strange feeling of remembrance. Zoning out wasn¡¯t too uncommon for him. The cold embrace of the wind made him want to further seclude himself internally. He couldn¡¯t help but lose himself in memories, as he watched the ground pass by.
Section Song: ThunderAura (Foley)
Staring at the ground for so long soon became boring once he returned to reality. It felt like his body was moving on its own as they pulled the man. He didn''t even notice that it had been almost an hour and a half since anyone said anything. His hands felt like cold marble while he gripped the soaking wet shirt that was his part of the rope. He switched hands to give it a break, when he let go, the skin on his palm was wrinkled and a purplish color. Amazed at how long it''s been since either of the two said anything, he felt like he should break the ice. Nova looked like he wasn''t paying attention to anything, and Eris''s face was not viewable. The way she walked, looked like a puppet to him. ¡°How long has it been?¡± He said aloud. Both ends of the rope jumped, Eris¡¯s shoulders perked up as if she got splashed with cold water. She looked back at him wide eyes. She looked around her briefly before saying, ¡°I, don¡¯t know. A long time?¡± Zeais heard a sneeze behind him. It¡¯s pretty cold, I hope we don¡¯t get sick. Maybe we¡¯re almost there? He could barely feel his legs, when he took the time to focus on how his body was doing, he noticed he was sweating and his legs were sore. ¡°Are you both all right? It¡¯s been a while, need a break?¡± "I think a break might be good. There''s nothing around right now too," proposed Eris. ¡°My legs hurt,¡± Nova complained. "Alright then, let''s take a break here," said Zeais. The children slowed to a stop and released their parts of the rope. After holding wet cloth so long, Zeais felt like his hands would fall off. In fact, they hurt so much that he wouldn''t be surprised if they crumbled right in front of him. ¡°My ankle hurts so much.¡± Eris groaned. ¡°Did you sprain it?¡± Zeais asked worriedly. ¡°No, it¡¯s just sore. I¡¯m not used to this kind of pulling.¡± ¡°Me too..¡± Nova sniffled. We¡¯re all so tired, I wonder how much farther it is. Rain still covered the plains and wet them the entire time, but it was no longer an issue after being soaked for so long. Zeais stretched his arms back as he sat down on the wet grass. As he peered up at the sky, he knew it gave him nothing but pitch black darkness and the occasional white spot here and there. What he felt though was much less empty, it was a feeling of a sort of freedom. Images of a night sky were still rooted in his brain from when he was a baby. The scene was always fuzzy and there was no color, but it was the only time he could truly see the sky with his own eyes. He sighed. ¡°Do you know where the Second Sun is today?¡± Eris asked suddenly. A question he didn¡¯t foresee, but nonetheless felt like he could answer. ¡°No.¡± ¡°I see.¡± Her expression was more disappointed than he expected. Eris seemed to be studying the sky just like him. She peered around in all directions. Is she looking for it? He felt like should appease her, after he had given such a stale answer. "I don''t know where it is, but why are you looking for it? The night only just started." "Well, I-" She closed her mouth and lowered her eyes. "Just wanted to see if I could see it is all." Rain dripped from her hair and slid down her face. Zeais felt like there was something more to her words, but he didn''t want to pry. ¡°I see, maybe you can find it if you really look.¡± Eris gave a slight smile. ¡°Mm, maybe. I hope so.¡± The expression she gave was soft and her eyes longed for something. It¡¯s not my business, but I hope you see what you¡¯re looking for. Chapter 6 After a short while of rest, the children decided that they had enough of a break. It wasn''t enough of a break to completely heal their fatigue, but the man''s groan of agony was more than enough reason for them to keep moving. The darkness crept up on them when the clouds decided enough light had been in. Through near pitch black darkness, their trudge to Rigas continued as the never-ending rain poured over them. Eris''s mouth was quivering, "It''s pretty dark now¡­" "It is, I couldn''t see anything at all anyways," Zeais noted. ¡°If we had a candle or flare, that would be great.¡± "I might have something!" Nove exclaimed as he felt his pockets. His excitement died, and looked dejected, "Nevermind, sorry. I thought I still had the marker. I already used it though¡­" ¡°The one from back at the grove?¡± asked Eris. ¡°Mhm,¡± responded Nova. ¡°You don¡¯t need to say sorry Nova. If you didn¡¯t use it, we wouldn¡¯t have gotten to you so quickly.¡± ¡°Really?¡± he asked with a slight high tone. ¡°Yes! I¡¯m glad you used it,¡± Eris said brightly. ¡°You did good.¡± Nova smiled faintly as he looked back at his uncle. I''m glad as well. If I''d never been where I was, he might have¡­ I wonder why she. ¡°Hey, Eris?¡± ¡°Hmm?¡± she replied. ¡°You never saw Nova and his Uncle going in your direction?¡± ¡°No, I didn¡¯t see anyone.¡± ¡®Where were you and your Uncle going Nova?¡± ¡°He was taking me into the fields to help him find Curie Trees!¡± replied Nova. ¡°You mean Cry Wood?¡± asked Zeais. ¡°Mhm! He said he would teach me how to make paper! The kind that¡­um..sparkles!¡± ¡°There are still tees left!?¡± ¡°He said people were talking about in town.¡± "Oh, thats really nice!" "By, town, do you mean Don''te?" ¡°Yes!¡± exclaimed Nova. Hmm, I should look to maybe, before they end up all gone. Zeais looked at Eris curiously. ¡°Are you from Don¡¯te too Eris?¡± ¡°¡±Uhh,¡± Eris looked out into the distance, where Don¡¯te would be. A brief look of sadness crossed her face, ¡°Yeah¡­¡± Did she not want to answer that? ¡°What were you there for?¡± ¡°I went to see a repair shop, I heard the merchants are pretty good.¡± ¡°They are!¡± Eris had a warm smile on her face that was just out of view from Zeais. ¡°They¡¯re very kind people.¡± ¡°I got asked to keep a bunch of things for visiting. I think they liked me?¡± ¡°Maybe they wanted a good customer to come back.¡± ¡°Maybe..¡± Zeais rubbed his stomach and sighed. ¡°All the food around there smelled great. I wish I could have gotten a bit of it.¡± ¡°Are you hungry?¡± Nova chimed in from the back. ¡°I have jerky if you need it!¡± He rummaged through his pockets hurriedly. Zeais put up a hand behind him, ¡°You don¡¯t need to give me anything, you should save it for yourself.¡± He turned around to look at the boy and smiled. ¡°You should keep it. With how small you are we need every bit of strength you have, okay?¡± A large smirk crossed his face. Nova looked saddened, but he gave Zeais a nod and proceeded to pull just a bit harder. That¡¯s the spirit little one. Zeais turned and looked at Eris from behind. If she¡¯s out here, what was she doing? ¡°Where were you coming from, Eris? Hunting?¡± Eris spoke to him as she faced forward, ¡°No, I was coming from the town Brights.¡± ¡°Oh? I¡¯ve never seen you traveling before, what did you go there for?¡± ¡°I went to trade for something, just like you, but it wasn¡¯t enough..¡± ¡°I see. Was it your first time there?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Eris¡¯s words slipped into a rather low voice. ¡°I haven¡¯t been many places, but¡­ It¡¯s a really beautiful place.¡± "That''s, good?" Zeais twisted his head and pondered what she said. His first thought was that she wasn''t a regular traveler. "You went all the way there and didn''t pack anything?" "No, I did but!-" Her voice raised in pitch as she fell backward. Zeais put his hands out to try and stop her fall. Her body pushed back on him and he too almost fell back. With a bit of strength, he managed to keep them both from crushing Nova. "S-Sorry, I slipped on a bit of mud!" ¡°Uh, no worries.¡± Zeais had to drop his part of the rope to catch her. As he bent over, he could faintly see a skid mark in the mud. ¡°Watch out for this bit of mud Nova.¡± ¡°Okay.¡± Nova beeped from behind. ¡°Thank you,¡± Eris stood herself up straight and grabbed her rope. When she began to pull, she cleared her throat. ¡°I did, but I forgot it back in Brights. I got lost with time playing with the smaller children..¡± ¡°Why didn¡¯t you go back to get it?¡± "When I felt hungry, I reached for my strap and realized it wasn''t there," Eris gave a short chuckle. "I knew something felt weird. I was about to turn around and go back but¡­ I saw, something." Her voice once again lowered, but unlike last time, she had a harsh pitch. "I looked up¡­ and then." She began to trail off from her words and held a hand to her head. Zeais was about to reach out to her, ¡°You okay?¡± Eris shook her head, ¡°I¡¯m, fine..¡± ¡°Alright, if you want to stop we can-¡± "No. I''m not tired it''s just... My head hurts." ¡°Well, we should be close to the town I think, maybe you need medicine.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think medicine would help, I sort of feel better already.¡± ¡°Is that so?¡± Is she sick or something? Or is it..? ¡°If you feel worse let us know okay?¡± ¡°Okay, but that man is more important to help instead. So we should hurry, for all of us.¡± ¡°Right.¡± Their conversation ended there. The night filled plains, breezy wind, and cold rain were the only things that made sounds. The faint light that faintly glowed far in the distance was much brighter than long ago. Silence befell the children until Eris asked, ¡°Zeais? Have you been to Brights? Do you think all the younger children in Brights, orphans?¡± Zeais brought a hand to his chin, ¡°Hmm, I don¡¯t think so. Not all of us are.¡± Eris looked back at Zeais with almost lightning speed¡°Oh!? You¡¯re from there? Why didn¡¯t you say that!¡± ¡°I thought it was obvious.¡± Eris gave a small pout, ¡°Then that means you can answer my questions.¡± Nooooo, I hate being asked questions. "Sure, I''d love to answer!" ¡°Great. Okay, firstly, why is it so high up? Doesn¡¯t that make it hard to do things? And what about the children, isn¡¯t that hard on them?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know why it¡¯s so high, but we have things that make it easier to bring in goods. The smaller children don¡¯t do work like me and the others, but they don¡¯t mind running up and down the mountain.¡± "Hmm, I see. Next, why are there no merchants? Doesn''t every place have them?" ¡°I don¡¯t know, I never thought about that. Maybe because it¡¯s hard to bring lots of wagons? I don¡¯t know about that other one either, I¡¯ve only been around the county.¡± Eris pouted and faced forward, she spoke quietly. ¡°What do you know then..¡± ¡°I know that I can still hear you.¡± ¡°Hmph! Anyways, one last thing then.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°Why wouldn¡¯t the weapons maker accept my knife as a trade? Is it because I¡¯m an outsider?¡± ¡°Mr. Hines does that to everyone. He tells all of us,¡± Zeais cleared his throat and spoke in a rough voice. ¡°If you¡¯re going to trade, make it something that won¡¯t help you when the time comes.¡± "So that''s why. I guess I shouldn''t have yelled at him then." "Yeah, that''s not a good idea. He gives children reasonable deals if he''s in a good mood." Eris sighed ¡°I was being so rude¡­ I got too impatient.¡± ¡±If you ever go back to Brights I can talk to him for you.¡± ¡°Really!? That would be nice,¡± Eris smiled at him. ¡°Thank you.¡± Zeais gave her a happy grin back, ¡°No, problem. You¡¯ll need your bag back anyway, you helped me so I¡¯ll help you.¡± ¡°Really. Thank you.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not a big deal, the only thing is what you are looking for. What kind of weapon is it that you want? A knife? Sword?¡± This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work. ¡°I¡¯m looking for¡­ for¡­¡± Eris paused. Zeais could swear she was looking at him, but the look in her eyes was far more distant. Even without the brightness of her eyes, she just had that look that didn¡¯t look, right. Her pause was so long, that the low howl of the wind would be a better conversation. Eris''s expression didn''t change much but she kept a stoic look as she finished her answer, "A gun." A gun!? That''s not really a small trade¡­ And she wanted to trade a knife!? ¡°Ummm, uh. I don¡¯t know. What to do you need such a weapon for, that a knife wouldn¡¯t be enough for?¡± Eris eyes were void of light that he could barely recognize her. Her voice was just barely audible to him, ¡°Murderers.¡± Zeais walked unaware of what she had just said until he replayed it in his mind. Wha? Murderers? Zeais finally caught up with his thoughts, before he could form a rational thought, he had to ask her. ¡°What do you-¡± As his words were just about to come out, his body suddenly fell backward. When he looked to grab onto the nearest object, Eris, he quickly knew that plan would fail, as she was falling backward as well. Nova fell on top of his unconscious uncle and managed to dodge the other two children as they fell toward him. A short burst of high winds sailed over them soon after. The wind wasn''t strong enough to knock them over once more, but the flying water was more than enough to make them think twice to open their eyes. All three of them knew what would come next, the unearthly sound of screams. They quickly covered their ears for the ensuing sound. Like thunder, an ear piercing screech roared throughout the plains. An out of tune instrument would be the last thing Zeais would think of to describe it. No matter how much he heard it or how hard he tried to drown out the sound. The distinct whine always made his skin feel like it was being harassed by insects. Eris immediately took her chance, pushing off of Zeais''s chest with a hand, she looked into the distance of the sound. Storm clouds near the area she looked at parted ways, bringing the soft colorful light from the hidden moon with down to the ground below. For a second, her eyes grew wide, "I see them." No! Do they have to form right now!? Zeais stood up and brushed off his muddied legs, "Are they far?" Eris squinted, ¡°A bit. I don¡¯t think it can notice us. We need to go, we aren¡¯t far.¡± Thud¡­Thud¡­Thud¡­Thud. The sound of its legs pounded the ground and echoed loudly. Each step it took had to be no more than four seconds between the next. Its size was incomparable. Nova held his eyes shut the entire time, ¡°No! No no! Is it going to get us?¡± Eris gave him a half smile, "It''s okay Nova. Not if we go quickly. Let''s hurry okay?" Nova still had his eyes closed, but a hand touched his head. "Be strong, right? We aren''t far, let''s go, Nova," Zeais said, as he also gave the young boy a smile. His was more on the grinning side. Nova¡¯s eyes lit up, he could see a spark of determination in him. Good. Now then¡­ "Do you think we can get there quickly, Eris?'' While she picked up her part of the rope she spoke rapidly, "It''s just a hill, we should be fine." She rested the rope over her shoulder and looked back, "Let''s hurry." Zeais and Nova followed her instruction and got into position. The three of them pulled with more strength than they had before. Making it to Rigas was far more urgent now than just taking the man to receive help. And this was supposed to be my break... How did this- Another shriek blew past his ears, much lighter than before, but still annoying to listen to. Nova looked back at the supposed location of the creature, his face twisted with fear. ¡°It¡¯s walking to us!¡± ¡°Don¡¯t look back Nova, just keep looking straight. Just focus on my back, we will get there.¡± Nova broke his gaze on the far monstrosity, and focused on Zeais¡¯s back, ¡°Okay..¡± Their pace was far quicker than before, at the rate they were going, they could make it within twenty minutes. Zeais didn''t care to ask for any more details on the distance, moving as quickly as he could, was all he could do. "The beginning of the hill is coming up! Try and go a bit faster so we don''t slide!" Zeais put his back into it, he pulled as if he were going to tackle Eris right in front of him, fortunately, she was doing the same. The hill''s incline began to steadily rise, he could feel the difference immediately. He didn''t notice the amount of groaning he was making as he pulled. Thud¡­Thud¡­Thud¡­Thud. The sound of its steps almost made his heart stop. It¡¯s getting faster. Eris began to pull slightly harder, ¡°We should go faster.¡± The incline gradually steepened, Eris¡¯s face could almost touch the ground as she pulled. The slick grass made a wet slick sound when her feet shot forward. She fell face forward onto the ground and lost her grip with the rope. Zeais grunted when he felt the man begin to slide down. He leaned as far as he could to try and keep them from losing progress. Eris sprung up and wiped her face of mud. She grabbed the rope hurridly, ¡°Sorry! Try not to slip it¡¯s getting a bit steep.¡± Zeais was too preoccupied with pulling to say anything. ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-- The children continued to drag the man up the hill for what felt like forever. The ever-encroaching steps continued far behind them. Zeais raggedly sputtered, ¡°How tall- is this- hill!?¡± Eris was just as bad, "I can''t- tell... It''s too- dark." THUD. THUD. THUD. THUD. The monstrosities movements grew louder and sounded much faster than before. Zeais¡¯s hear was pounding so hard he felt like it exploding once wouldn¡¯t be enough. I¡¯ve never been so close to these things. The hill was almost as steep as a flight of stairs, the man''s weight was much more difficult to keep up. They were barely making progress compared to when they first began the hills ascent. Zeais struggled to keep his body forward ¡°There¡¯s no way!- we can keep pulling!- him!¡± Eris grabbed the rope tightly and took the rope off her shoulder. She quickly twisted around and pulled the man backward. ¡°Turn around- it will be easier.¡± Zeais followed her suggestion and turned around. Nova mimicked him and clumsily twisted his body to face his uncle. She was right, this feels a lot bette- "AAaaah noo!" Nova screamed ahead of him. His eyes were fixated on the enormous monster that looked like it could reach them in no time. Zeais could hear the boy began to sob, "I-I''m sorry!- It''s my fault- I shouldn''t ha-have- said I wa-wanted to g-g-go-" "NOVA!" A ferocious yell came from behind Zeais, it was almost as scary as the 40-meter high monster chasing them that he couldn''t see. "Be strong! We''re almost there okay! We''ll be fine! Just pull with everything you''ve got!" Nova was sobbing, but he still seemed to put everything he had into it. ¡°He¡¯s getting to- heavy!¡±Zeais yelled ahead. ¡°We need to start- going side to side!¡± Without a skip to her step, Eris steered slowly into a diagonal path. It wasn''t a large difference than before, but Zeais feel it was easier to walk upward. Unfortunately, the man''s weight was wanted by gravity and hindered their diagonal ascension. Once again, rain began to pour furiously, wind steadily blew up the hill and into the children''s faces. Barely able to see, they squinted their eyes and pulled in whichever direction lead them. ¡°This was much easier- when it was flat!¡± Zeais complained. ¡°Isn¡¯t there a regular entrance- for this place!?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve never been here before- either, remember!?¡± Thud¡­Thud¡­Thud¡­Thud¡­Thud¡­Thud. The quickened pace of the monster''s footsteps put Zeais''s heart into overdrive. Eris began to rigorously pull upward. ¡°I can see it!¡± she yelled to the below her. ¡°I can see the top of the hill!¡± Zeais felt like he heard the magic words, a second wind he had no idea he had came in to play. Nova as tired as he looked, was still managing to help a good amount. Left, right, left, right, the children zigzagged up the hill as quickly as they could. With each step they took, the hill became more difficult to walk up, even diagonally. The man''s weight was too heavy to go sideways and he was basically all dead weight. It was easier for them to pull him and keep him from sliding while they pulled the sled on the sides of the hill. We have to be getting close now, I can fee- Zeais noticed something strange, he was listening for the thunderous steps, but there were none. That''s when he felt his heart drop. Zeais was so shook that he instinctively yelled at Eris, ¡°How close are we!?¡± She looked at him confusedly, but he knew something was strange. Zeais listened carefully into the silent night. Bzzzztt, a sound he couldn¡¯t mistake. ¡°Uuhh, we need to go! Right now!¡± Eris looked even more confused until she looked out into the distance. It wasn''t the lack of sound that made her recoil, it was the mass of darkness that covered the fields. Accompanied by the sound of millions of tiny wings and slithering bodies, the pitch black wave surged forward. It rolled over the hills toward the children like a wave of water from a dam. All three of them frantically began to tug and pull the sled, when a couple dozen flying insects zoomed past their heads. Nova cried out when a large insect landed on his forehead, ¡°AHHH!¡±. Zeais swatted the insect from the boys head before he could even finish his cry. The man¡¯s body also had uninvited guests crawling around. Once again he looked at Eris who knew even without him saying it. She looked over her shoulder to what remained of the hill, "It''s rounding off! Just a bit- more!" The ground began to shake violently as the black swarm rushed up the hill. A faint white light could be seen shooting out from all directions underneath the swarm. ¡°The Influ¨º is so far¡­¡± mumbled Eris as she looked out into the distance. As she pulled the rope back, her steps became easier. Without skipping a beat she turned around and tried to run up the remaining hill. Zeais caught on when he passed the same point and turned around as well. Finally!? Is this it!? Nova began to tug with all his remaining strength, to help Eris and Zeais bring the man up the hill. As soon as the sled tip into the air and lightly laid flat on the ground, all three of them dropped to the ground. The constant buzzing noise wasn''t as bad as before knowing that he had made it up the hill. Zeais looked out at the bright contrast that was the town of Rigas. Of course, he could see nothing, but the town''s light showing life was enough to make him happy. "Now we just need to go dow-" AoooooRRRRRRRRRRDDDDDD! A thunderous crack of screeching nearly deafened him. The earth beneath him felt unsteady and the air pressure that blasted him made it impossible to stand. Zeais fell to his knees and held his ears until the violent screech ceased. Both Eris and Nova took the same action, aside from the Nova shedding tears. His small body quivered as he laid there. Within seconds the screech had stopped and its echo could be heard far throughout the plains. Another rumble of the ground took place, except this time it didn¡¯t seem to get closer. It stopped¡­ Which means... Sh-! Zeais rushed to get up, ¡°It¡¯s forming again! We need to go!¡±. His body felt tight but he knew now wasn¡¯t the time to give in. Within the area that the deafening noise came from, a large abundance of light rose from the depths of the black swarm. It rose to a height where the insects had to form pillars to keep hold of it. The most spread out parts of the swarm came flooding back toward the light,. They formed a massive ball of slithering and wing beating creatures. The ball of insects crashed down over on top of the light and proceeded to cover it almost entirely. As if under command, other areas of the swarm formed large limb-like pieces and conjoined with the center area. The children didn''t have time to watch as their enemy pulled it''s self together, this was their time to go. Right behind them, the city could be seen. There were large structures holding large materials together and plenty of lights from homes and shops. It all lay in the middle of an increasingly slopped hill. They were nearly there and the descent was the only thing in their way. Eris grabbed the rope, as well as the crying Nova''s hand and screamed to Zeais, "Let''s go! While we still can!". Already part of my plan girl. Zeais rushed up to the sled and took part of the rope. The two of them began to pull as hard as they could while Nova had given up. For just the two of them, it wasn¡¯t as hard as before, the downward slope definitely helped. In fact, it was so easy that they could almost begin to job as they pulled. The children rushed down the hill as carefully as they could with the unconscious man. The grass was still slick and there was still light rainfall. Taking careful steps was almost impossible as the sled began to catch up their speed. ¡°Uhh, Eris! We should probably slow down.¡± cautioned Zeais Eris looked back at the man who was steadily sliding faster, ¡°I know, but maybe we ca- EEP!¡±. A quick shift of the ground beneath them made them lose balance. AoooooRRRRRRRR! Another roar from monstrosity whipped out above the children''s heads. Nova''s small legs gave out when the rumble happened, he fell to the ground like a brick, right in front of Zeais. He knew he wouldn''t be able to dodge the boy''s body. Not because he had just fallen in front of him, but because he was already on his way to the ground himself. What little of the world he could see, looked like slow motion. He could see his hands flailing about uselessly, as he tried to pinpoint a place to safely land. His body soared over Nova''s small body like a skipping rock. He, unfortunately, did not take into account his legs. He watched as his foot slowly s meet with Nova''s head as he passed over him. Nova''s face writhed in pain and his eyes were shut tight. As if the world had gone back to normal space-time standards, Zeais''s face plowed into the ground. All he could see was the world violently twisting as he flew down the hill. Eris, on the other hand, had saved her self from falling, but she couldn''t keep the sled from accelerating forward on her own. She looked at both Zeais and Nova as they rolled past her, as well as the man helplessly sliding down. Surprise wasn''t the only expression that appeared on her face. The hills decline dipped down and she could no longer just jog. Almost full on sprint was the only option as she chased after both the man and children. Several Thuds sounded out over her head as she ran down. A short glance upward and a massive foot could be seen above her. Brief flashes of light shot out and strange high pitched gurgles came from the other side of the hill. Eris snapped her attention to the town when yet another bright light flashed over her face. A large whitish-yellow circle searched over the hill. The source of it was a child operating a large Eternal lantern in a tower. She wasted no time to try and get their attention. ¡°HHHHHHEEEEEEELLLLPPPP!!!!!¡ª HHHHHHEEEEEEELLLLPPPP!!!!!¡± From far away, she could see the child look in her direction. Her eye''s brightened as she slowed to keep her eyes steady, the child in the tower''s eyes also brightened. Immediately after their eyes dimmed, the child tugged on the adult guard next to him. The ran up to the edge of the tower and seemed to be talking to people below. A loud barrage of bells all rang at once from all over the city. A large gate opened below the tower opened and men and women of various ages ran out with all sorts of tools. The women were armed with sacks that had a distinctly red glow to them. The men had several jars filled with a black liquid. Once they came out of the gate, indistinct chatter could be heard from far away. A few fingers pointed in the children''s direction, then they all came running at once. Zeais thought he would throw up from rolling so much. He had finally reached a point where the hill was no longer steep and he could stop himself with his hands. After a couple of tries, he quit rolling successfully. The gray space around him swirled so much, he for sure knew he would puke. ¡°GET DOWN!!¡± An unfamiliar loud voice erupted from afar. He tried to look in the direction of the voices but all he saw were small balls of faint light flying in his direction. Those lights were actually the glowing sacks the women held. The sacks soared over his head one by one. Each woman swung their sack in a circle with a rope. After they hit the max amount of swing that flung the sack onto the hill as far as they could. A large amount of slithering insects and bugs poured over the top of the hill. Giant slams cracked through the air and the ground as the monstrosity¡¯s center area loomed over the hill. A dark shadow cast over the children and the surrounding base of the field as it brought a leg over to their side. Eris was still behind running down the hill as the men threw the jars over her. She ducked to dodge the brittle glass of black liquid. The jars seemed to be aimed at the sacks of red light. One of the sacks was already covered behind her. It gave off a loud whistle before exploding into a fiery ball of purple fire. The explosion was not only bright and loud, but it gave off almost the same loud screech the monstrosity did. After the first explosion, more sacks scattered over the hill began to whistle loudly. Eris''s legs became a blur once several whistles went off at once. She sprinted full speed down the remaining hill. Her face looked stoic and desperate all at once. Zeais was confused as his world was still spinning around him. He became even more confused when a pair of burly hands grabbed at him and lifted him from the ground. ¡°What the!?¡± "Calm down kid! We''re going to get you out of here!" A deep voice bellowed to him. He wanted to get a peek at who was casually carrying him, but all he could see was his back and the trot of his legs. ¡°Run girl! Run!¡± A bunch of women yelled from nearby. Soon after their yell, a series of explosions all went off at once in a fiery mushroom of purple. The creatures foot was right above it and flew upward from the force of the blast. A loud screech erupted from both the explosion and the monster. Zeais looked around as he covered his ears. Three men were running with the man wrapped like a mummy and another one of them held Nova like he was a tote bag. As the entire group ran back toward the gate, Zeais saw the giant creature screech one last time in protest. It roared at the artificial screech of the exploded sacks and retreated away from the hill. A rain of black goop rained from the sky. Gobs of insects bundled together fell all over the place. That¡¯s gross. The sight of the grass disappearing as the large wooden gates closed was the last thing he saw before he was thrown to the ground. ¡°Ow! Thank you, but was that necessary!?¡± ¡°You should count your blessings kid that there was a watch out today.¡± The large man who carried him spat. Eris was right next to him on the ground, breathing heavily, ¡°Thank¡ª you..¡± Zeais didn¡¯t feel like arguing with his saviors, he was just glad he could take some shelter and rest. Achoo! Zeais sniffed his nose. Finally, shelter. I¡¯m so hungry¡­ Chapter C1
Section Song: Distant Leaps to Circinus
Workers around the room watched as Chase walked toward the door near his desk. After rambling on for a half hour, he finally gave in. ¡°Chase! Where the hell do you think you¡¯re going?!¡± ¡°Home! I¡¯m done! This used to be about something more, and now it¡¯s a damned mess!¡± Chase, wiped his face of blood and flicked it to the ground. The blood splattered against the bright white floor and made an erratic pattern. ¡°You can¡¯t just leave after it failed. You know the Cypher won¡¯t have any of thi-¡± ¡°I said I¡¯m done!¡± He threw down his large white coat, stained with blood. ¡°There''s nothing to gain from playing God. To subject them to this, only because they can see them¡­¡± ¡°You know damn well that what we do is not bad, it¡¯s for the sake of every person on this planet!¡± Chase began to laugh at his coworker''s words. ¡°Haha, okay. If that¡¯s the case. Why did we unleash everything we had back then? You and I know there was no reason or merit in doing that! Because a child mumbled it? Because he said ¡®Release them¡¯? That''s bullshit! Those things are out there now, because of us!¡± Chase began to fume, he felt his anger bellow more with each word he spoke. ¡°This isn¡¯t a simple test anymore. There''s more than we know going on. Playing into the hands we were dealt with isn¡¯t the way we should handle this!¡± "Chase, calm down," another coworker said, "Just try and see the truth behind it. We need you. Try and remember the 8 sightings. Why we take pride in-" ¡°No! I¡¯m fucking done!¡± Chase turned around, furious, he swiped all the materials off his desk. ¡°If no one wants to hear me out, then I¡¯ll gladly take on the whole damn world if I have to!¡± Chase grabbed the doorknob and threw the door wide open. He expected to get a rise out of his coworkers by showing his fury, but when he looked back one last time, his heart felt like it was stopped in time. Their faces are blank. He didn¡¯t know what else to do. His entire plan was to get them to think about their actions, instead what he saw before him was the saddest thing he had ever seen. Why do they not see? Why do their eyes show so little empathy? A glimpse of something appeared in the corner of his eye, when he turned to look at it, it was the mirror they used for experiments. Whenever he looked into the mirror, he always turned away because he couldn¡¯t stand to see what went on in front of it. He could always see the experiments going on whether he looked forward or backward.Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings. What he saw now though, was just as heartbreaking as he saw before. His eyes too were just as soulless as those who stood before him. I see¡­ His eyes began to feel itchy and the world started to blur. I¡¯m just as bad as them. After all, it¡¯s my fault they are gone. Tears fell down his face. I¡¯m all too responsible for those poor souls. Even if they can¡¯t see, I swear I will make them live a better li- The back of his head felt like it was suddenly on fire, he also noticed he was no longer looking at the mirror. The last moments he could see were his coworkers walking away from him, as he fell to the ground and lost consciousness. ¡°Fret not my son, we will heal the wounds within you as well.¡±
Chase''s vision was blurred. The people he saw before, his office, the mirror, it was all gone. His arms wouldn¡¯t budge when he tried to move them. As he came to, he quickly realized where he was. A holding table? His body was spread apart with his arms and legs tied down. Bare skin was exposed to the world and he could do nothing to hide. A dark-haired man walked in front of him, he held a leather notebook in one hand and a retinoscope in another. ¡°Don¡¯t be afraid. You just can¡¯t see is all. You¡¯ll soon be able to embrace the future that they have paved for us.¡± Chase knew he would be held captive, but it was pure luck on who would take him in for evaluation. ¡°Harlan. Listen to me. We don¡¯t need to do this. It doesn¡¯t have to be this way!¡± The man he named Harlan, cleaned his glasses with his white coat and rested them back on his face. He tapped his notebook with a finger. "Oh yes, it does Chase." Harlan sighed. "Look at yourself, quite pitiful for a follower such as yourself. All the research you''ve done. And the experiments you managed greatly benefited us. Why do you choose to sully it now? What other way could this have possibly gone, Chase?" "Come on Harlan, look at yourself! I''m your best friend! You don''t see anything wrong with this!? You know we only did the experiments because of that girl''s words. It''s true we gained something very powerful, but the way we run things doesn''t need to be the same as before. If you listen to-" Chase stopped when he realized Harlan wasn¡¯t paying him any attention. He was too preoccupied setting down a leather case that had a strange animated glow to it. ¡°Harlan!¡± screamed Chase. He knew very well what he was trying to do. ¡°Stop it! Please! You know why I¡¯m doing this! Why can¡¯t you just look the other way!¡± "You know I can''t do that Chase," said Harlan void of any emotion. "Even if our cause is questionable, we must push further." Harlan put on darkly shaded goggles over his glasses. Other workers within the room did the same. "Even if the world is against us, we must strive to keep our secrets safe." Harlan turned around and slowly pulled out the reason for why the leather case shined so oddly. As tiny as a marble, between his fingers, he held a small black sphere. The light it irradiated was otherworldly and could not be explained in simple terms. "For when people turn their eyes to the truth, can they truly see the world beyond just our own." "Stop. Stop. Stop!" Chase began to struggle as Harlan started to approach him. Trying to pull his arm from his shackles and twisting his torso about, he tried to find any way he could escape. It was futile, he knew it was from the very beginning. His resistance died down, his voice began to tremble as he softly said, "Stop¡­ Please, Harlan." His friend''s face didn''t change in the slightest. Chase closed his eyes and tears began to stream down his cheeks. The light from the small black sphere dyed the room in all sorts of colors as if it had a rainbow inside it. The more it was exposed though, the more the coloring became skewed. Chase felt odd, he knew closing his eyelids would do nothing, but he at least wanted to feel like he was resisting just a bit more. Chase could still vividly see the wild colors swirl and stretch in his eyes. The rainbow-colored sea of light was magnificent if he had to put a word to it. It¡¯s just as beautiful as when I first found it¡­ but¡­
Section song: Memory Distorted
A loud screeching sound erupted from the sphere and the rainbow-colored light turned gray in an instant. The screech was of no effect to Chase, after all, it was only for a second that he could hear it clearly. A screech that sounds so distraught was like a whisper in his ear. The world that was once alive, was as ashen gray as the aftermath of a fire. The people within the room who should have been moving, including Harlan, were all frozen in place. The sphere still emitted light that projected different levels of contrast, around the room. Yet, nothing else showed any signs of life. Chase said nothing, he couldn''t say anything even if he wished to. His consciousness was still intact, but his body felt light years away. He felt like he was seeing a dream, but he knew very well, that this was the reality. With no warning, Chase heard a sigh. Within his limited vision, he saw no one speak. "Your kind really has no self-respect, do they," A voice of indiscernible gender said. A bright light began to descend in front of him, casting shadows haphazardly throughout the room. His vision began to fade as a wave of black covered his vision. "Let us begin, Chase." Chapter 7
Section Song: Days and Nights
The town''s chief, Reginald, pointed toward a large building that looked like it was made by the hands of a skilled architect. "This will be the Inn you two stay in tonight." The older man stepped down from the carriage seat and gestured to Zeais and Eris. "Come on you two, down you come," he said with an old but deep croaky voice. Zeais hopped from the passenger seat of the carriage and landed on the ground with a thud. Eris followed suit and yawned as she casually climbed down. The view of the Inn from the ground gave it a menacing look as it sat lonesomely in the dark. Eris yawned again, ¡°It looks like one of those rich people houses. Like the ones with the-¡± ¡°Yes, yes, it¡¯s very well built, but the man who built it is far from rich. In more ways than one.¡± Chief Reginald, seemed uninterested with her remarks. Well, that¡¯s rude, cutting her off like that. The Chief walked toward the entrance of the Inn, a large archway. It was made of various stones that towered highly, but there was no gate that was held in place. Zeais and Eris, followed the old man as he walked down the stone path that leads to the door. The sound of water somewhere in the dark protruded the otherwise silent night. It was dark in the surrounding area and Zeais couldn¡¯t make out one source of light nearby. Everything seemed so quiet compared to just an hour ago. After they had been asked so many questions about their situation, it was like night in day. My ears feel so at peace. The three of them walked further down the path and met with wooden stairs. From the sound of the wood, Zeais knew they were very dense, he could even feel the strength they had as he walked up. Oh? Nice choice. Maybe I¡¯ll take a look at these once it¡¯s light out. I¡¯m sure I can find the same wood if I walk around long enough. Chief Reginald stopped in front of the door and twisted the knob, the lock was set. He knocked loudly on the dark brown wood four times, "Yale! You have customers!" I wouldn¡¯t blame the guy for not coming out, it¡¯s definitely late. The Chief looked at both Zeais and Eris, ¡°I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll have a pleasant stay. I¡¯ve known the man who owns this place for more than a decade now. He may seem rough at times, but bear with him, he¡¯s¡­ trying.¡± What does he mean by, trying? A light turned on far off to the left. One of the windows was open. Heavy footsteps could be heard as someone walked down the hall. The footsteps stopped in front of the door and the doorknob began to twist. The door clicked and its hinges made no sound as the door opened. A large broad shoulder peaked out first, followed by the head and torso of a man who had to be at least two meters tall. He¡¯s huge! The man the Chief called Yale earlier, looked at the faces of everyone who stood outside. ¡°Customers? Now?¡± he questioned with a deep bellowing voice. ¡°Chief too huh. Who do we have here?¡± "These children found themselves in an unfortunate situation and need a place to stay for a few nights. Don''t worry about them paying, I''ll take care of that. Just know that they have agreed to come to visit me tomorrow so we can talk more." ¡°I don¡¯t mind letting them stay here, but next time Chief can you not make so much noise, my daughter''s trying to sleep. You can just pull that string right there, and I will come.¡± Yale pointed to a thick brown rope that went up into the roofing. A sign behind it read ¡®For late summons, please ring twice¡¯. ¡°Ah, my apologies Yale, my old age has forgotten how much detail you¡¯ve put forth into this place.¡± ¡°As long as you remember next time¡­ Anyway, I will board these two, I suppose I can also transport them to your office and pick up the payment as well.¡± ¡°Great! I can always depend on you Yale. The others¡­ not so much.¡± ¡°Yes, yes. I know,¡± Yale waved his hand in a dismissively to the Chief then beckoned the children to come in. ¡°Follow me you two. I¡¯ll get you all set up.¡± Zeais and Eris walked inside after Yale opened the door fully, a warmly lit lounge area greeted them. The interior was smaller than Zeais thought it would be. It still looked grand, but just at a much smaller more quaint, scale. There weren''t any high-quality paintings or rare cloth to be seen anywhere. In fact, it looked more like a giant living room, one of which you¡¯d find in a regular house. Chief Reginald stood outside the door and turned around. He walked away as Yale closed the door, "Thank you, Yale. I knew I could count on you." Yale nodded and slowly closed the door. ¡°Yeah, sure... Old man,¡± he said quietly. He turned around to look at Zeais and Eris as they looked around the Inn, ¡°This way you two.¡± Zeais followed his instruction and walked behind him aside Eris. They walked down a dimly lit corridor that was opposite of the area Yale came from. After walking for a while, they stopped in front of a room with a sign that had the letter G on it. Yale grabbed the doorknob and entered into the pitch black room. After a few seconds of rummaging, an eternal candle lit the room with a warm hue. Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°The bed¡¯s aren¡¯t made so I¡¯ll go fetch you some blankets. Feel free to sit here or use the bathroom to the left of the hall. I¡¯ll be back.¡± Yale promptly left the room with Zeais and Eris standing there in silence. The first to make a noise was Eris as she fell back onto the bed closest to her. Hair covered her face as she laid on her back. ¡°Do you think Nova will be okay? And his uncle?¡± Zeais paid attention to her instead of staring at the walls around him, "Uhh, yeah." He walked around her bed, to the only other available mattress and sat down. "I think they will be fine. If what they said is true and the doctor is really the best in town, I think they''ll be fine." ¡°I see. That¡¯s good.¡± A yawn flowed from her mouth as she covered her face with an arm. ¡°Tired?¡± ¡°Mmm, it¡¯s been a long day.¡± "For you too huh¡­ I agree," Zeais fell back onto the mattress, mimicking Eris. "I wish I could fly." A questioning ¡°Hm?,¡± escaped from Eris. "I mean, it''s my fault Nova got hurt like that. If I had paid more attention, then maybe I could have¡­ avoided it." "It''s not your fault," Eris kicked her feet up into the air, and threw them down to fling her self off the bed. "Things happened that you can''t stop right? Not every day can only be good." ¡°That¡¯s true..¡± "But not every day has to end badly either," Eris said as she disappeared out into the hallway. Not every day has to end badly either, huh. Yale entered the room slowly as he carried a large bundle of sheets and a box. He set them down on the bed Eris had been using. ¡°Where did your friend go?¡± ¡°I think she went to the bathroom.¡± "Alright. If you decide to use it too, there are separate rooms for both the bathtub and the lavatory. They both have a men and women side." ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°If you want to go use it while I set up the room feel free.¡± Zeais thought about it for a second. I haven¡¯t showered in a while, probably should¡­ ¡°I¡¯ll do that. Just that way right?¡± Zeais pointed to the right of the hall. ¡°To the left little one.¡± ¡°Ah, thank you.¡± Zeais gave Yale a nod as he unpackaged the sheets. He then left the room to walk down the dimly lit hallway. The darkness of the hallway wasn¡¯t too bad, he could still make out the small details far ahead. It should be somewhere nearby¡­ Ah is this it? A bright light shined from underneath the door he stopped in front of. A picture of a shower, hands with water pouring over them, and a toilet, were all engraved on the placard of the door. This must be it. Zeais entered the room, bright candles scattered around the walls lit the room brightly, it made it hard for him to see for a few seconds. After his eyes adjusted, he studied the various shelves that held towels and all types of other bathroom necessities. The room was neither small nor large in size. There¡¯s probably enough for the whole hallway to use. Zeais grabbed one of the drying towels and smelled it. Freshly washed. He began to grab more items for use, things he had not seen before. A bottle he picked up was had a hand-drawn label that read ¡®smell good¡¯. Is this soap? He opened the bottle and sniffed it. Yeah, this smells like that expensive perfume that town ladies wear. Don¡¯t need that. After putting the jar back, he took what few items he had and walked to the next set of doors. Neither of these has a sign¡­ Which one is it supp- A voice from the left door grabbed his attention. ¡°Hmm, hm, hmm, hmmm,¡± A childish hum came from the door to his left, he knew the decision would be easy. Yep, not that one. He opened the door to the room that sounded empty. There, he was greeted with a decently sized washroom with a sink, bathtub, and toilet. In fact, there were several of each with curtains that surrounded them. Wow, if we had something like this at brights, I wouldn¡¯t have to look at Eloy walk around naked all the sudden. Zeais plopped his things down near the closest bathtub and went to the faucet. Oh nice, they have showers too! Guess I¡¯ll do that first. Zeais was excited, after all, his hometown could barely be called a town at all. A smile came upon his face that he couldn¡¯t quite keep down. Guess I¡¯ll have to rub this one in their faces when I get back. His smile turned into a snickering grin as he turned on the water to the shower.
Section Song: Along with them
The next day, Zeais awakened to the smell of fresh food. His eyes blinked as he opened them. Bright sunlight illuminated the room as a breeze rolled in through the open window. The air carried the scent of a meal through the room and into Zeais¡¯s nose. Bread? He sniffed the air and some kind of¡­ meat? His eyes focused in on the gray wood in front of him. Wha¡­ What roof is that? Zeais turned over to view more of the unfamiliar surroundings. A nightstand sat next to his bed with a wooden cup holding water and a handwritten note that said ¡®Welcome!¡¯ Oh right¡­ I remember now. The Inn. He attempted to sit up and get a better view of the room. ¡°AH! Ow!¡± Zeais put a hand to his back, ¡°My arms too¡­ So sore. Nope, I¡¯m done.¡± After letting his body fall back down to the bed, he pulled the covers over his head. I can¡¯t live like this, I¡¯m done forever. I¡¯m going back to sleep. His eyes closed as he adjusted himself into a comfortable position. Silence overtook his mind as he began to sink into sleep mode, but a knock on the door ruptured his bliss. ¡°Room Service!¡± a light voice on the other side of the door called. A sigh escaped his mouth as turned over, ¡°Come iiinn.¡± Wait a minute, is that girl even here? Zeais pulled the covers from his head to look at the bed in front of him. It was empty. The sheets were set and it looked like there was nobody there at all. Where¡¯d she go? As he thought about where Eris had gone, the person who was on the other side of the door began to come in. ¡°Excuuse me, coming innn.¡± A girl with fair skin and yellow pupils popped her head in slowly. Her light brown hair was tied in a ponytail and swung about as she twisted into the room with a large tray of food. The girl wore a simple blue, cotton button up shirt, with dark coffee colored pants. The pants barely reached her ankles. She looks around our age. She¡¯s a bit tall though. Really pretty though, maybe she¡¯d look like an angel if she wore lighter clothing? The girl entered the room and closed the door behind her as she held the tray with one hand. ¡°Good morn..ning?¡± she said as she looked around the room. ¡°Riiight here.¡± Zeais tiredly said as he peaked from the sheets that covered him. ¡°Oh¡­ Sorry to wake you, but I brought you breakfast.¡± As if he had heard the words he''d been waiting for for years, he rose up as if he had all the energy in the world. "No no no, it''s fine, I was already awake anyway." ¡°I see, I¡¯m glad then!¡± The girl gave him a large smile as she walked over to the table that sat near the window. Ohh! That looks delicious. There¡¯s even some mashed corn paste! But¡­ ¡°This is free right?¡± The girl set the tray down on the table and turned around with a happy bounce, "Yes! And in fact! I made this!" She gave a triumphant pose as she stood next to the table. "Not all inns do this you know but my father believes in treating guests as if they were family!" ¡°Your father?¡± ¡°Oh, sorry. We haven¡¯t had a guest in a while so I almost forgot.¡± She bowed her head slightly, ¡°My name is Anya and I work this Inn with my father. I hope you have enjoyed your stay so far!¡± She lifted her head and gave him a large smile. Chapter 8
Chapter Song: Along With Them
Zeais couldn''t help but speak through his teeth, "Nice to meet you, Anya." All that energy he felt moments ago, crashed down when his body begged for more rest. His body fell backward and he let out a pained sigh. Anya rushed to the side of his bed, ¡°Are you okay!?¡± ¡°No, not at all,¡± Zeais gave a quick chuckle, ¡°but, I¡¯ll live. I¡¯m just a little sore.¡± ¡°Is that so, well, if you need anything to help you, I can ask my father.¡± ¡°Thank you, I¡¯ll let you know if I need something.¡± Not that I want to. I just want to lay here and pass out. "Rest easy then, I need to go help make more food." Anya smiled and turned away from him. She walked around the beds to maker her way to the door. She turned around before she reached the door and looked at Zeais, "Hey, do you want to walk around the Inn later?" Zeais raised an eyebrow and gave a bumbling, ¡°Uhh. S-Sure.¡± Why though¡­ ¡°Great!¡± she exclaimed, ¡°I¡¯ll take both of you around after I¡¯m done okay?¡± Both of us? Anya opened the door behind her and a hand grasped air as the knob had moved away from it. Eris stood there with a surprised look as she stared at the two of them from the hallway. Her hand lifted up and turned into a wave like it was intended, her face was as stoic as always, ¡°Hi.¡± Hm, what the? Zeais inspected Eris from afar. ¡°Did you have clothes hidden away or something?¡± Eris shook her head, ¡°Anya gave them to me.¡± Zeais looked to Anya for confirmation. "Yep!" Anya folded her arms triumphantly and gave a large smile. "They were left behind by guest long ago, but I think I did a good job. They look great on Eris!" Eris looked down as she loosely held up her dress from the hems, ¡°Really?¡± "Yes! Very much yes!" Anya smiled even more when she took another look at her clothes. "I have to go though, I''ll be back soon." She waved to Eris and walked by her, disappearing into the hallway. Eris looked back at Anya one last time as she closed the door. Her body swayed as she walked to her bed limply fell into her sheets. Zeais scratched his head, ¡°You look tired.¡± ¡°I am.¡± She said into the sheets. ¡°I see you two have met before?¡± Eris lifted her head from the sheets, ¡°No, I went the bathroom and bumped into her. We talked for a really long time¡­¡± ¡°How long is long?¡± Eris sighed into her sheets once more, ¡°Before the sun came up¡­¡± ¡°¡­too long.¡± ¡°What did you two even talk about?¡± Her head lifted up from her sheets once more, her poker face as prominent as ever, ¡°Secret.¡± ¡°Secret? What kind of secret?¡± She sat up and dragged her body to her pillow, her eyes closed as she spoke, ¡°A secret one.¡± ¡°Aww come on, is girl talk that down low?¡± She turned over on her side, facing away from Zeais, ¡°A secret is a secret, you¡¯ll see soon anyway.¡± Eris gave a quiet yawn, ¡°I¡¯m sleepy, don¡¯t be too loud please.¡± Zeais for some reason or another thought he could reach out and grab her from afar. "Hey ju-" The peaceful pose she had was as clear as broad daylight, deep hibernation. Well fine then. I¡¯ll have to entertain myself some other way. If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement. The aroma from the food the Inn worker brought, made Zeais float from his bed. Right, I almost forgot. A smile crossed his face that he knew he couldn¡¯t contain. His bare feet touched the floor as he threw the blankets off and sat up. The floor was cool to the touch and his body ached from the previous night, but his hunger made him press on. Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow. A sigh came from Eris as he walked toward the table, ¡°They have bath salts that are good for sore muscles, you should probably use it.¡± Ah- was I speaking out loud? ¡°Sorry¡­ Thanks.¡± A soft and tired mhmmslipped from her as she adjusted into an even more comfortable position. Zeais continued to the table and loomed over his plate. There was an assortment of the usual vegetable and fruit, but the most appetizing part was, of course, sweet corn paste, my favorite. There was also a small amount of meat placed on the side. Ehh, meat''s good and all but, the good stuff''s gotta be the veggies. What kind is it though? Fox? Boar? Moose? He sniffed the dish once more, letting the different spices and seasonings fill his mind with animalistic urges. The meat doesn''t smell too bad though, in fact, that might be first. Zeais was about to dive into his free breakfast until he remembered an important fact about himself. I don¡¯t think I can restrain myself here, I should move somewhere else. Zeais grabbed the tray which was pretty large compared to his size, How did she even carry this!? He turned around as carefully as he could to keep everything from spilling over or waking Eris any more. Each step was like a days wait time and his stomach groaned with anticipation. Maybe that front lounge will be a good place. When he reached the door, he took a peek at Eris to see if she was paying any attention to his awkwardness. Her face was lax and her eyes were closed. The orange highlights in her hair fell over her face messily. Nice, she''s asleep. A smirk crossed his face as he smelled the fresh aroma from the tray, I need to move quickly so it doesn¡¯t get cold. Zeais twisted the doorknob as quietly as he could and slowly opened the door. To his surprise, the door made no sound just like the night before. Either these doors are made from the night sky or there is a ton of oil on the hinge things. Zeais slipped into the hallway carefully closing the door behind him. A slightly chilled gust brushed his skin and made the hairs on his arms stand up. Whew, it¡¯s cold out here. I hope it¡¯s not like this out in the lounge. The maple-colored walls and bright sunlight flew past Zeais¡¯s vision as he speed-walked through the hall. Cautiously paying attention to the tray in front of him was of top priority. He made sure there were no sudden tilts or movements that would spell disaster for the sustenance before him. The end of the hallway came to an end and the open lobby he saw before greeted him with a nice morning feel. It looks a lot better when there¡¯s light. As he peered around at what details he could see, he saw there was no table where the seating area was. I could have sworn there was a table... Maybe it was something else. Zeais sighed. Where else can I- A sign on the corner of the wall from where he came captured his attention. A few steps brought him close enough to read. "Restroom, laundry, r-recre-ation room, dining room. I don''t really want to eat with other people though. Whatever doesn''t hurt to see if it''s empty." Zeais followed the instructions of the sign and walked to another corridor that was beyond the lounge. The hallway that should have lead to the dining room was a lot shorter than the one his room resided in. Maple wood was still prominent and there were even a few rooms he saw as he walked by. Shortly after, two large doors came into view for him, with bright rays of light bursting from the entrance. Two signs flanked the doors with the words ¡®Dining Room¡¯ This is it. His head poked his head inside and he was presented with the sight of a wonderfully large gray table, at least from his perspective. The room was not entirely large but it was enough to fit the table, plenty of chairs and various other dining ware on shelves. All of the cases that held ware were behind glass panes and had the doors that looked like they required keys. If this isn¡¯t a dining room, I don¡¯t know what is. There doesn¡¯t seem to be anybody here either. Zeais looked around and double checked that he was in the clear. Nice! Maybe it¡¯s just early in the morning and no one is awake? He shrugged his shoulder to his thought and placed the tray on the table by the closest chair. The chair made a rough screech as he pulled it back and sat down. His hands caressed the base of the chair, right below the upholstery that comforted his bottom. This is pretty nice wood. I wonder if all this wood is from a place far away¡­ Before he could let his thoughts run wild, food came first. The scent that emanated from the tray was less potent and reminded him that he only had so much time. Time to start before this gets cold. No time was wasted for Zeais to pick up the spoon and shovel sweet corn paste into his mouth. Zeais knew he made lots of noise when eating but he could never hold down his ¡®mmm¡¯s¡¯ and ¡®aaahs¡¯ after each bite. He could restrain himself to some degree, his plan was always the same when eating. First some of the best, then the rest, dry part second to last followed by a wash down with the best part. This is how his meals always panned out, even now. The sweet corn paste had to wait until he finished up the veggies and the slice of meat. Scarfing, scooping, slurping, he gave no regards to what he did to his plate or the sounds he made when alone. After a couple minutes, he came back around to the last remaining bits of sweet corn. As he dropped the spoon on the plate, he leaned his head back and closed his eyes. This. This is what I¡¯ve been waiting for. Anya said she helped make this? I can¡¯t believe it. The real mastermind has to be the chef. A yawn escaped his mouth and his arms fell down to swing freely from the table. The soreness in his body was still there, but he could care less given how peaceful his meal was. I¡¯m getting tired. He shoved the tray up the table and rested his head down in its place. I can¡¯t fall asleep here. That would be rude. His eyes slowly closed. No, my will is weak. I¡¯m sure it¡¯ll be fine for just a second. After a few seconds of resting his head, there was no returning. "Hey," A deep voice suddenly said from behind him. Zeais couldn''t help but shoot his eyes open in surprise. "If you need to rest head back to your room. The recreation room is also a good place." The pulses of his heart were so quick and heavy that he almost didn¡¯t hear what the voice said. Jeez, he almost gave me a heart attack. Who is this? Zeais lifted his head and turned around in the chair to see the tall Inn Keeper Yale, standing in the frame of the door. Zeais hoped down from the chair as quick as he could and stood up tall. ¡°I¡¯m sorry!¡± ¡°Calm down, I¡¯m not mad,¡± Yale walked up to him and looked down and the table then to him. Well, you sure do look mad. ¡°Did you enjoy the food?¡± ¡°Uhh, yes. It was very good. Actually, it was very very good!¡± ¡°Good, Thank you. I¡¯m sure Anya will be happy to hear that too.¡± Yale grabbed the tray off the table, ¡°Go on now, I¡¯ll clean this up.¡± Zeais followed his instruction and walked away after giving him a silent nod. Wait a minute. Zeais looked back at Yale with what he had said on his mind. That bear made that?! I can¡¯t believe it. There¡¯s no way... I should ask him for lessons... Zeais continued to leave as the giant of a man Yale, cleaned up after him. As he exited the double doors a deep rough cough came from inside the dining room. He didn¡¯t want to stick around any longer than he needed to.The cough sounded like the type someone would point out and ask if they were okay, but it was none of his business. Getting away from the room was enough to hide the embarrassment of having someone clean up after him. Sounds rough though... He stood blankly in the hallway for a few seconds, now what? An image popped into his head, it was the guide sign he saw earlier. The recreation room! That sounds interesting, I guess I can go there then. I¡¯m full, awake and have nothing better to do. The visit with the Chief isn¡¯t until later in the day too. The arrow pointing in the direction of his destination was fresh in his mind. He began to leave the dining room front and walked further down the hallway where there was another corridor that connected to it. Another sign was posted up on the edge of the wall that had room numbers, restroom locations and again, the recreation room. After a few dozen seconds the same type of dining doors as the living room had appeared. The doors were wide open and a display of couches and tables littered the room. Just like the dining room, it was not large, but there was plenty of room for what it needed to do. Shelves inside the room held all sorts of cards, dice, and other hand games that could be played in groups. None of the items interested him. What he really sought was the comfort of what lay before him, does that couch have, fur? Patches of brown furs littered the otherwise black covered couch. The cushions were made of the same material and proudly claimed their health as they shined from the few light rays in the room. I think this trip is definitely worth it now. Chapter J1
Chapter Song: White Cloth
Beings of the lost. Damned to traverse the same planes of existence for as long as they could. Until the day they faded away, they would only peer into the abyss that was nowhere. Trapped in a fake world, they served the purpose of being something they were not. One of these beings was forced to stray off its path. Void of its own volition, it hurtled toward places it could not understand. Without senses, it gave in to the power of the universe and traveled the only path it could go. It did not travel forever, nor did it fall into the abyss with nothing. Every moment it gained something. A sense that it could not understand. The only knowledge it held, was the job that it held. To speak to the ¡®Subjects¡¯. There was no other meaning to its life, but the things it had acquired during its short journey, had changed it. The being did could not see before, but the vivid colors it could see before it was undoubtedly real. It knew the sight before it had to be true, for vision was only granted to the higher beings, not for the likes of a drone. Strangely colored fogs and objects clouded it¡¯s vision, as it fell endlessly through the abyss. Within moments it could tell what certain shapes were, especially the form of a sphere. For it was the basis of the universe. Time was something it could not tell, nor did the spatial dimension make sense to it. This being that could only take the path of least resistance, shot through the innermost workings of the verse. Enormous spheres whizzed by, so did smaller ones, followed by the brightness of what it would call, a higher being. More giant spheres passed by and the plane of existence it saw had suddenly turned blue. It passed through strange white objects, then through shapes that could not be described by it. Quickly, before it even had time to assess what it saw, it¡¯s sight turned black. Instincts and memories of life began to flood into its body, burning into it the billions of years of creation. it could finally make sense of what it had seen. A problem had occurred to it. If it were to be branded by this world it fell upon, what would become of the life it knew before? It wanted answers and the time was now, to find them. Light suddenly found its way to its eyes, but it could still not see. Sounds were produced from its throat, but it could not speak words. It was just like before, but the only thing different was the feeling of warmth and the voice of something it felt was familiar. An odd sensation occurred when it heard something speak. It knew it was directed toward it when it said ¡°Jing, my dear sweet child. Be strong.¡±
Her short black hair shook carelessly from the breeze that ran through the room. The broken windows and old worn decor of the walls contrasted to the red robe she donned. Her red eyes stared at the floor sleepily, as she laid her head into her knees. I can¡¯t fall asleep here. I need to go find that boy. He could lead me to those people, but I¡¯m so tired. I need food. But I want to keep going. The town isn¡¯t that far. I can make it. Jing stood up and stretched her legs and arms. Resting in the abandoned cabin was a whim, but she felt it saved her a little energy from walking all day. Ahhh, that feels good! Maybe I can find something on the way. According to this map, hmmm. She pulled a small crumbled map from her pocket. The poorly drawn pictures were confusing to her, but she still was grateful to the traveling girl who gave it to her. Ah! I see, somewhere near the north huh. There are forests with edible fruits. It''s along the way too! I''m getting excited! A loud complaint from her stomach, begging for contents, echoed through the small cabin. Uugh, fine, I¡¯m going! Jing dusted off her robe and buried the map into its pockets. Excitedly, she ran up to the broken down door and pushed it to the side. For some reason when she tried to close it, the hinges just wouldn¡¯t give in, so she left it open and thanked it aloud for letting her stay. Without a second thought, she ran straight for the dirt road that leads to the nearest town, Pioneer. The delicious aroma of fresh fruit picked at her mind. It¡¯s only a couple dozen miles to town and only an hour to food! You got this! Her internal monologue gave her the motivation she needed to get started on another day of travel. This was only the beginning of yet another long path, to discover the truth about her, and the strange world she now fell in love with.
Agh! I¡¯m done! Time to walk. The road leading to Pioneer looked endless. Stretching forever, even past the drifting mountains that bumped and smashed each other. The constant boom of giant mounds of dirt and rock constantly hitting each other was more than enough to drive her mad. Where is this turn suppose to be? And what is this doodle? A fork? A tree? Jing sighed into her hands. She looked behind her and saw the same scenery, an endless stretch leading to her start. I guess I just have to keep going, no point in walking back to nothing. Still, this map could be drawn better. Jing resumed her walk toward what she could only hope was the right direction. She kicked a sole rock to bid time as she traveled. After about 15 more minutes of walking, she took out her satchel from underneath her robe and took out the lukewarm bota bag filled with water. The liquid was far from refreshing but it staved off her dehydration just like it needed to. After parching her throat, she returned the bottle and satchel to their original place. Before she continued to subject herself to more grueling leg labor, a sound coming from behind her captured her attention. This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience. What is that? She turned around and looked into the sunset, a black wide shadow slowly came in her direction. A carriage? Best to hide. There were plenty of trees, rocks, and crystalline structures to hide behind. Her choice was a nearby bush that was obscured by a couple trees off the side of the road. A quick jog over to her point of concealment, she laid back into the bush to further hide her body. The sound of rough wheels and heavy hooves, crept closer and closer every minute. A couple more minutes had gone by and the sound was only just beginning to be close enough to her, but they still hadn¡¯t passed. Why are they going so slow? That doesn¡¯t sound like a horse gait either. The clop of the hooves was just as slow as someone taping their finger at bar stand. It won¡¯t hurt to peak. Jing tried to make as little noise as possible while she got into a low crawl bedside the bush. Bathed in sunlight and covered in old white fur, was a large animal that had the looks of an Ox but carried the stature of a hippo. In fact, Jing was sure that it was an Ox, but on a much larger scale than normal. So fat. What are they feeding that thing? To find the culprit of the animal''s large size, she looked at the driver seat. In the pilot seat was an old man wearing some type of form of a sweater and a hat design that she had never seen before. Another pile of fur sat beside him, which seemed to move and be looking in her direction. Crap! It¡¯s a dog. Jing retreated backward into the bush, hoping that the dog wouldn¡¯t come after her. A quick yelp like bark came from the carriage, followed by a whistle and the stop of the Ox¡¯s hooves. "¡­." The sound of boots walking on wood clearly resounded from the direction of the carriage. "It''s alright, I saw you long ago back when I was on the path!" A heavy yet old southern accent came from the carriage. "I ain''t gonna hurt cha, even my boy Mali took enough liking to you to bark. I got pretty keen eyes so I know you''re behind that bush there." "¡­." ¡°If ya need a ride I can give you one.¡± Should I just stay here? Maybe, he¡¯ll just go away. He has a dog though, if he really wanted to hurt me he¡¯d send it after me. I guess¡­ he¡¯s harmless. Jing slowly peeked over the bushes, letting only her hair and eyes take a gander at the man. He stood atop of his carriage, with an arm leaning on the wall behind him. The black hat he wore was tipped upward, letting anyone see the man''s full facial features. His skin was a light brown shade and his hair was on the grayish black side. While she thought he was an old man, the lack of wrinkles on his face definitely gave a much younger image than his voice made. The dog didn¡¯t get off the carriage but instead darted all over it with his long shaggy gray hair flapping with each look. ¡°Hey there. You heading to Pioneer?¡± Jing nodded. ¡°Do you need a ride?¡± Her answer was silence. Giving into such a random offer wasn¡¯t normal. ¡°Quiet one huh. Well then. If you don¡¯t, then I¡¯m just going to continue.¡± The man sat down and took up his reigns. ¡°Have a nice one young lady.¡± He gave a soft whip to the reigns and the Ox slowly walked forward. The wooden wheels crushed the small pebbles and dirt leaving imprints in the ground. If he¡¯s going to leave that easily, then I guess he¡¯s just traveling. It should be fine. Plus, there might not be another chance to hitch a ride before it gets dark. Jing stood up from the bush and dusted herself off. The carriage wasn¡¯t the fastest and an easy quick pace was all she need to walk up next to it. ¡°Will you really give me a ride?¡± The old man didn''t look at her but only stared out into the distance. "Yes indeed. Helping out travelers is just a habit of this old man." He tapped the empty space of the seat. "Besides, I''m sure you don''t want to get caught up in that red spray far ahead." Just as he had said, far off in the distance and high in the sky was a large red mist that could never be mistaken for anything else. It was going to rain, but if only it were a normal rainfall. If she were to get caught in it, the effects would leave her sick for days. "I''ll take your offer, Mister." He had finally looked at her and gave a warm smile, ¡°Well then hop on up. Whistle right there will get us¡± to the town in a few hours flat.¡± The old man rubbed the Ox¡¯s hind with his boot. JIng grabbed hold of the metal handles and climbed aboard with the stepping stool. The dog that was aboard, came straight for her face for a nice wet lick. The old man grabbed the dogs collar and slid him back. ¡°Back boy, let the girl climb up.¡± The dog settled down and laid on its stomach awaiting her arrival. She made it all the way up and took a seat as far as she could from the old man. Her view of the Ox¡¯s back seemed grand in a way. "Its name is Whistle? Why? What''s the dog''s name then?" ¡°Why the name huh? Well, if you ever camp out with that big oaf then you¡¯d see why you can¡¯t even get a wink in. As for the walking carpet here, his name is Alps. Found him as a puppy long ago, in some snowy mountains.¡± This old man is¡­ something. "I see. My name is Jing," she knew it''d be rude not to introduce herself, she wasn''t that skeptical. "Nice to meet you." "Nice to meet ya too Jing, I''m Jav. That''s the short version but, that''s all ya really need for my name. The rest is too much for most people to say." "What''s the rest?" The old man gave a raspy chuckle, ¡°Javier Perez Aguilar Garcia De la Santa.¡± Jing stared at the man''s crooked-toothed smile. For some reason, she couldn''t help but smile at the man''s gestures. He seems alright. JIng rested her back against the wooden wall and looked out into the distance. The warm orange hue of the sunset''s light, mixed with the far dark gray sky, made a nice warm reddish color around the area. The far down forest that could be seen below from atop the hill, was also a gorgeous sight. The dog next to her slowly pawed his way up to her lap and rested his head as he looked up at her. She gave a hesitant rub to his backside in which he reacted with a slow sway of his tail. The relaxing pace they traveled at could easily put her to sleep. She knew better though than to fall asleep near a stranger. But.. trusting some people isn¡¯t so bad every now and then. Chapter 9
Chapter Song: Hint of Hope
¡°You only have one day Eris, one.¡± The short woman held a high stance over Eris. Her shoulder length hair was riddled with gray hairs that flowed over her forehead, nearly covering her dark blue eyes. She pointed at the windows with a stern voice, ¡° When the moon rises again, time is up. You best be home before this time, or that will be the end of this. Do you understand?¡± Eris was neither disinterested nor excited, by her caregiver''s words. She knew this was a golden opportunity to make more progress with her plan. Eris looked up at the woman, she stared directly into her eyes, ¡°Yes, Valyn.¡± The caregiver, Valyn, turned away from Eris and walked over to the dining room table without a word. A cardboard box with a shop stamp rested on top of the table. She grabbed the box and walked back over to the blank-faced Eris. ¡°You can take the jacket, it was your money after all.¡± She handed the box to her, but as Eris tried to pull the box, it wouldn¡¯t budge. ¡°Just know, if I catch you trying to pull a stunt on me like that again. Confinement won¡¯t be your only punishment.¡± Valyn let go of the box slowly while Eris maintained Eye contact. ¡°I understand.¡± ¡°Good, your time starts now. You can do as you please.¡± ¡°Yes, Ma¡¯am.¡± ¡°Be careful and be on time.¡± Eris bowed her head slightly and turned away from the woman who was basically her third mother. I can¡¯t believe it worked. Her joyous thoughts of finally being let free, if only for a little while, made her ecstatic. Her demeanor was only on the inside, she needed to keep her face stoic. Finally. Finally. FINALLY! Eris walked up to the flight of stairs that lead to the upstairs hallway. Once she was out of sight from the stern Valyn, she gave a hard sigh. She didn¡¯t need a hand to her chest to feel the race of her heartbeat, it was loud enough that she thought she would have to breath heavier to dampen it. I lied to her. If she finds out that I¡¯m not visiting a friend, I¡¯ll probably be locked in the room forever. By room, she meant the attic, which she was ascending a step ladder to get to. A wooden door she had a key to, blocked her way until she unlocked it and slid it to the side. Her large but dusty room was a place only for her, no other items or areas were taken up by anything other than her belongings and trinkets. The reason being, the attic was old and unstable as a storage place but had enough strength to withstand one girl and her small assortment of items. Eris estimated the house was made a few hundred years ago, though that would be impossible. No matter how old it was though, she had four years of failed plans saved up within her room. Moonlight shined through the small oval window, over the various handcrafted knives, small crystals, and other discards. Her small white padded bed lay near the window, ready for extended actions of sleep and rest. She could finally smile with no regard of who might be looking. This was her place of solitude. Eris set the box with her jacket down closest to her bed. Just in case that deviant decides to try and sneak in here. Her bed was soft enough that she could fall into it without upsetting the family below with the creaky floor. She didn¡¯t need to deal with the Son or his fathers yelling. I was given this chance out of pure luck. I can''t waste it. Eris rolled over in her bed, Only a day though. So short. Yet her stupid son can be out for much longer¡­ She rested her hand on the box next to her. That''s fine though. I have enough time, I know I can make it back. Eris closed her eyes and let the darkness wrap her in slumber. Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.
Eris had awakened to the unfamiliar sight of maple walls. Rays of sunlight brightly shined in her face, taunting her for not keeping her promise. What a reminder. I didn¡¯t make it¡­ Valyn will probably never let me leave town again. Eris sighed as she sat up in bed. She looked to her left to see if Zeais was still in the room. Its sheets were ruffled and the tray that Anya had brought was gone as well. Her gaze petered down to her toes as she wiggled them. Having to meet with the Chief of this place doesn¡¯t help either. This is the worst. I couldn¡¯t get the weapons smith to get me a gun, I¡¯m more than a day late getting home and I have a headache. I¡¯m so stupid. She clenched her fists as she hugged her knees to her chest. I don¡¯t want to go back. I¡¯m sure she will- A sharp pain near her heart made her clench her chest, she clamped her eyes shut to keep tears from escaping. I¡¯m somewhere I don¡¯t know. Surrounded by people I don¡¯t know. Even now I¡¯m alone. What do I do now? Maybe I can just leave? No. That would be rude, especially after last night. There¡¯s also Nova too¡­ I wonder if he¡¯s alright? Eris released her legs and let them touch the floor. Her feet felt as if they were touching snow. This reminds me of Seresa. It was snowy then though. The floors were cold, but her body was so warm. Soon it will be the same around this time too, huh. Eris looked toward the window. The sunlight was prominent, yet condensation fogged the windows, telling her of what she can expect outside. What would Seresa be doing if this happened? Would I even be doing this? Her gaze was fixed to the floor for a few seconds until the distant clatter of something far away in the Inn resounded through the walls. If I¡¯ve already broken the rule, I may as well get the most I can out of it. Before I go back, I need to find more things that will help me. Eris slipped on her boots that were hidden underneath the bed. She looked for her coat but came to the realization that it was no longer with her. Ah, that''s right. It¡¯s with that man still. After she stood up and stretched, she grabbed her knife from underneath her pillow and tried to store it somewhere on her person. This dress still feels wrong. I don¡¯t have anywhere to put anything. It doesn¡¯t have any use other than being cute. She placed the knife underneath the mattress. Guess I''ll just have to leave it here instead. I''ll just try and make a sheath later. For now, I can see what''s in this town. Eris left her belongings and headed for the door. She slipped into the hallway and closed the door behind her. The cool draft was not comforting for her exposed limbs. It¡¯s so cold in here. With her arms held together, she walked down the hall and out into the lobby. Which way was the kitchen? Hmm, this way I think. Following her fuzzy directional memory, she headed down a familiar enough hallway. The smell of food and the chatter of dishes were a good sign of her intuition. This smell almost makes me hungry again. As the smell got stronger, the clanking of kitchen ware got louder once she turned into a familiar corner. She met with two large open doors that said Kitchen. Several wooden countertops littered the space. Bountiful sets of utensils and cooking ware were strewn about. Within the well-organized kitchen, the large Yale was putting away large pots into the cryo space. The doors to the cooling cell were wide open and bellowed out plenty of feet chilling. Anya was working right behind him, putting small portions of food into containers and storing them. Eris didn¡¯t need to make a sound as Anya had noticed her presence near the door and looked right at her. ¡°Oh! Hi Eris! Sorry, but breakfast ended a while ago.¡± Eris glanced back at the windows behind her, ¡°Has it been that long already?¡± ¡°You look like you just woke up, you¡¯re eyes are kinda hazy.¡± ¡°Mmm, I did.¡± "Hehe, I see. Well if you came for me, I can''t right now. I need to clean up first, but after this, I can take you around the Inn! Where is Zeais?" ¡°I don¡¯t know, he wasn¡¯t there when I woke up.¡± ¡°I see. Maybe he¡¯s walking around or something. Or maybe he¡¯s lost, we¡¯ll have to find him before we walk around!¡± Anya happily put away more food as she spoke to her. Eris tangled her hands together, "Before that, I wanted to take a look around town really quickly. There''s something I''m looking for." Anya sat down what looked like a heavy bag of fruit, "Oh. Um, what are you looking for in town? I know most of the town stores." ¡°I¡¯m looking for hunting shops or traders. I want to find a new weapon.¡± Anya''s face suddenly brightened, "You do hunts!?". She looked like she wanted to sprint over at full speed, but instead, she raised her body over the closest counter, "That is so cool!". Eris tilted her head, ¡°Really?¡± "Yes really! A lot of kids here do it too, but adults are usually the ones going out instead." ¡°Ooh? That¡¯s so strange.¡± ¡°I know right? I would love to do the same but,¡± A brief downcast look appeared on her face before being replaced by a light smile. ¡°I can¡¯t. Anyways. I know of some places you can go Eris.¡± Anya was nearly laying flat on the table with excitement until Yale walked by and pulled her back. Yale picked up more objects off the table Anya was previously resting on, "Anya, you''re in the way. Help me out or go talk in the hallway quickly." Her choice was set in stone as she ran up to Eris and left her father to continue his work. Anya grabbed Eris¡¯s hand and pulled her down the hallway, ¡°Come with me quickly! I¡¯ll point you in the direction.¡± Her grip was rather forceful but Eris didn¡¯t object to her excitement. The two walked through the Inn, straight to the front entrance. Anya opened the Inn doors, bringing in a fresh blast of cool air. The Sun was shining brightly aside from the occasional patch of clouds. The sky was a mix of gray and blue and almost looked like it would rain at some point in time. Without skipping a beat Anya pointed in the direction of distant buildings, ¡°You see that brown building with the metal line on the roof thing?¡± ¡°Mhmm.¡± ¡°You want to walk down that street for a couple of minutes, you will find all kinds of shops you¡¯re looking for.¡± ¡°Oh?¡± "Yup! There aren''t any I can say are good for what you''re looking for, since I don''t go out into town much, but I think you can try your luck there." ¡°Great. Are there any more?¡± ¡°Mmm, I don¡¯t know, but there are always new shops opening around here. So I¡¯m sure you can find something.¡± "Okay, thank you, Anya. I''ll go check them out, I''ll come back soon so we check out the Inn, okay?" Anya gave a wide grin, ¡°Of course! I¡¯ll even show you something really nice! I hope you look forward to it.¡± Eris raised her hand in a departure gesture, "I do, see you in a bit, Anya." Anya as always was smiling as she mimicked Eris, ¡°See you later!¡± Once they finished, Eris turned around to leave and Anya slipped back into the Inn. She walked down the stairs and head down the stone path that leads to the archway. Well. Let''s see what I can find here instead. Chapter 10
Section Song: Chilly Memories of Dawn
The skinny shop keeper rested on the counter and gave a dismissive wave, ¡°Sorry little miss, we don¡¯t have any ranged weapons here. Only close and defensive.¡± ¡°What about Stelite? Do you have that?¡± ¡°We¡¯re dry out of crystals miss. Not even a useless one.¡± ¡°Is that so¡­¡± The man tipped his hat down and slapped the counter as he stood up, ¡°That¡¯s right. All them up and sold.¡± "I see. Thank you, Mister." ¡°No problem kid, be safe out in town!¡± Eris exited yet another store, disappointed. Out of seven shops, none of them had anything useful to her. ¡°Nothing. This whole street had nothing.¡± A sigh escaped her as she looked up at the sky. Gray clouds rolled by, taking away the suns light bit by bit. I guess the other side is next. I hope she was right. At least one of these places has to have something. If I can just get a little bit of Stelite, I can finish off my other tools and sell them. Eris looked down the street to look. The road was nearly empty except for a few people scattered about. The ground gave soft crunches underneath her boots as she walked through the district. There were plenty of shops that littered the street, but there was an almost complete absence of customers. This place is so empty. She could count on both hands the number of people she saw who may have been customers. The few she saw looked like they were from different regions of Celcilin, as they were wearing in her opinion, strange clothing. Various hard surfaces lined their pelvis area and they had cloth imbued with crystal. There were only three men she saw that looked that way, the others seemed to be women that were scattered about at various stores. Their faces had the stereotypical outsider look as they smiled at the many deals available. Shopkeepers relaxed outside and inside their shops. Most had no customers and didn¡¯t seem to mind that nothing was going on. Even with so little people around, why are so many shops open? Eris pondered for a few seconds then gave up on thinking about it, it was just barely of interest to her as she walked across the section roads. The Inn could just barely be seen around a corner from where she was. Anya''s instructions were helpful, but the distance was much different than she thought to get to the town. All four directions of the street were nearly cleared of any carriages or mounts. There was only one man with a cart, being pulled by a donkey, he was selling fruit. I¡¯m glad I skipped over Rigas, I wouldn¡¯t have found anything. She continued to the next part of the district and was greeted by the first shop''s bright view of fancy clothing. The assortment of dresses, pants, top wear and hats were on the high side just from a glance. Many of the items had high-grade leather and wool from Silver Sheep. Again, she had no other interests besides weaponry. The next few stores were much of the same setting, clothing, and jewelry. None of them caught her eye initially until she passed by what looked like a mix between another dress shop and one that sold armor. There was clothing on display, but behind it, a few plates of metal armor stood hidden. I have time. Just a little peak.
Section Songs: Hint of Hope A place that once was *NEW RELEASE*
Eris grabbed the handle of the shop and entered with a dazzling hum from the utility crystals above her head. A woman behind a counter peaked from around the corner of the counter. She looked like she had a rather relaxed position like the other shop owners, ¡°Oh? A customer?¡± Her head could barely be seen, but the sound of her voice was clear. Is she speaking to me? Eris saw no reason not to introduce herself, ¡°Yes. Hello.¡± The woman stood up from behind the counter and walked around it. She yawned with her eyes closed as she walked toward the aisle, ¡°Yes, how may I help yo-¡± The woman stopped in her tracks when her eyes met with Eris¡¯s. ¡°oou..¡± She had smooth chocolate colored skin and a small purple earing that pierced her left ear. With light brown eyes and a slightly opened mouth, she had a look of surprise on her face. The black curly hair that flowed past her shoulders waved slightly from a nearby window. The vanilla long-sleeve shirt and knee-length skirt followed suit with her hair, dancing slightly from the wind. The woman relaxed her expression, "H-How may I help you, young lady." Eris walked up to the woman and stopped a few feet away, ¡°I¡¯m looking for Stelite. I saw that you had armor and..¡± Her words trailed off as she looked up at the woman who had a strange expression again. ¡°And, I was hoping you had some.¡± The woman''s face had an odd smile that Eris thought was, Kinda creepy. Eris tilted her head slightly, ¡°Ma¡¯am?¡± The woman seemed to jump out of some sort trance, ¡°OH! I¡¯m sorry, I spaced out for a bit, what did you need?¡± ¡°Stelite, I was wondering if you had any.¡± ¡°Ah, okay. One moment, let me see if I got any.¡± The woman took a double take before she walked to the door that stood behind the counter. Is there something on my face? While the shopkeeper made noise in the back room, Eris studied the armor she saw from outside. The charcoal black chest piece stood on a small stand, nearly hidden away by the clothing that was on display. Rays of light reflected off the surface of the reddish crystal encrusted collar and shoulder plates. She ran her fingers across the two places to feel out the difference in texture. To her surprise, the metals rough looking pattern was actually smooth and the glossy look of the crystal was more textured and rough. A comforting cloth lined the back of the collar piece. Filling inside the cloth felt nice and plush when she pressed her fingers into it. This is nice. It would be really cool to wear something like this. I wonder if there is something like this for my size? Without warning, a woman''s voice was close behind her, ¡°That¡¯s one of my favorite works you know.¡± Eris froze up but her body language would never give off the heart attack expression that she had. She turned around slowly to look up at the shopkeeper standing behind her with a small bag in hand. ¡°I made that so long ago I almost forget about it,¡± the shopkeeper said. Eris put a hand to her mouth to hide her sigh of relief, ¡°Is there more?¡± ¡°Oh, you interested in armor young lady?¡± ¡°A little.¡± A smile of glee appeared on the shopkeepers face as if she''d been waiting for that answer, "Well I''ve got a few things I can show you! Even at your size." ¡°I¡¯m not looking to buy though.¡± "I see, I see. That''s fine, I will do you a service young lady if you do me a favor?" Eris tilted her head, ¡°A favor?¡± ¡°Yes, a very simple one. If you help me out, I will give you the Stelite free of charge and a discount on one item!¡± The expression the woman made was almost childlike, an excited glimmer in her eyes that was admirable in a way. Mmmm, I don¡¯t know. What does this woman want from me? Maybe it¡¯s something good? Can I even trust her? Eris stared into the woman''s eyes. They seemed full and bright in color, unlike other adult¡¯s she¡¯d seen before. But that face she¡¯s making is kind of, weird. If I can get the Stelite for free though¡­ She seems nice enough, I guess. She rubbed her arm with a hand, ¡°Okay. What is the favor?¡± ¡°Weellll,¡± the shopkeeper said, ¡°It¡¯s sort of like two favors in one.¡± Eris was almost reluctant to ask why, but she decided to trust her gut that this woman was not a bad person. "Two? That''s, fine." ¡°Yes!¡¯ The shopkeeper pumped her fist with a bright smile. ¡°Then, if you don¡¯t mind.¡± If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. The woman''s arm approached Eris. Before she could really think about why she was doing that, the shopkeeper said, "Can I touch your hair?" You¡¯re already trying to. ¡°Um, yes?¡± As if her questioning tone wasn''t even considered, the shopkeeper put a hand on Eris''s head. She made a slow stroking pattern and curved down the side of her face to where her orange highlights were. The shopkeeper kneeled down, set the bag on the floor and continued to study Eris''s hair. Unlike earlier, she did not have a huge smile or glimmering eyes, but a rather studious and intense expression. Her eyebrows were relaxed yet they gave her eyes a prominent, serious look. Eris studied her face that was close enough to touch. Hazel irises and clean skin aside from small nicks and cuts. A nose that was around average size but leaned on the wide side. She¡¯s kind of pretty. ¡°You know. I was a bit surprised when you walked into the shop,¡± The shopkeeper said. ¡°Hm?¡± ¡°Not many children are into traveling here. I can also tell you aren¡¯t a resident here, this shop sees few customers.¡± ¡°Is that so.¡± "Mhm, but that''s not what caught my eye. It wasn''t this cute face or your strangely nice eyes. It was this." The shopkeeper ran her fingers through Eris¡¯s hair and gently put it in front of her eyes. ¡°I always wanted to do hair instead of making clothing and armor. When I saw you walk in I thought Wow! What a cute girl! But then I saw these highlights and I just died inside. The color is really good you know? It matches your eyes and your actual hair is really smooth and fluffy, I¡¯m sure a lot can be done here.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Yes, really. Who does your hair? Your mother?¡± ¡°No. Um, sort of yes.¡± ¡°Adopted?¡± ¡°Mm. ¡°Then she must really care for you. Look at how soft and well taken care of it is.¡± Eris grabbed the woman''s hand and had her release her hair. As if she had heard something ludicrous, she immediately said, ¡°Valyn, doesn¡¯t care about me. She only does it because Seresa asked her to.¡± ¡°Oh, I¡¯m sorry. Is this Seresa, your mother?¡± Eris shook her head, ¡°No, but I wish she was.¡± ¡°How can you be so sure though? That the other lady um, Valy, doesn¡¯t love you?¡± ¡°Because I¡¯m not even supposed to be here.¡± ¡°Not supposed to be here?¡± ¡°I have curfews. I can¡¯t leave town. I can¡¯t eat when I want. Her son gets everything he wants, but I get nothing. She yells at me all the time and I never get to explain myself. Her husband is really mean and so is her stupid son.¡± Eris¡¯s voice became raspy, ¡°How can that be fair? How is that caring for me?¡± The shopkeeper¡¯s expression was near shocked the moment Eris began to scowl. ¡°Oh! I¡¯m sorry! Did I ask something tha-¡± Eris¡¯s eyes began to water, just the slightest. Why am I still talking? She doesn¡¯t even need to know. Now I¡¯m almost about to cry. I didn¡¯t come here to do this. Stop it. She covered her eyes with her sleeve and wiped tears away that would have otherwise fallen if she hadn¡¯t been pinching arm the whole time. ¡°Are you okay, um, Miss?¡± the shopkeeper said. ¡°I¡¯m okay.¡± ¡°What¡¯s your name sweetie?¡± ¡°Eris.¡± ¡°Eris, nice to meet you. I¡¯m Ke¡¯Yan¡± The shopkeeper, Ke¡¯Yan held her hand out with a soft smile that reminded her of Anya in a way. After she calmed herself slightly, Eris reached out and touched her hand. ¡°You¡¯re an odd one,¡± Ke¡¯Yan smiled. ¡°That¡¯s suppose to be a handshake.¡± She herself didn''t know why she didn''t shake it as a normal person would. "Come on, I''ll show you part two of my, favor," Ke''Yan said. Eris followed Ke¡¯Yan¡¯s lead as she turned around and walked toward the back counter. Why? Why does she feel so, good? I don¡¯t believe the other adults are so nice. Ke¡¯Yan walked through the door behind her counter and gestured for her to come back. Eris stepped around the corner and entered the room. It was a tad dark until Ke''Yan turned on Eternal Candles scattered about. With each candlelight, a new part of the room appeared. Within seconds, she felt as if she were in a whole other place. A laugh could be heard from Ke¡¯Yan, who looked at Eris as she turned on one last candle, ¡°That face! Impressive right?¡± A nod was all she could manage to do as she looked at the walls lined with various armors and weapons. Most of which she had never seen designs for. Each part of an armor that was part of a set, stayed hoisted up by black ropes. Various markings and designs were etched into the metal plates. Each with its own set of colors and materials. While most of the armor looked like what guards wear, some looked entirely unfamiliar. ¡°D-Did you make all these?¡± Eris said. ¡°Yes! Of course.¡± ¡°Even these weird looking ones?¡± ¡°Those too.¡± ¡°Hmmm.¡± ¡°Those aren¡¯t what I wanted you to look at though.¡± Ke''Yan made her way to the large desk that sat against the wall. A plethora of tools sat on the table showing years of use and wear. ¡°What¡¯s that wheel looking thing?¡± Eris said. "That?" Ke''Yan pointed to the object in question as she unlocked a large drawer. "Have you never seen a sewing machine before?" Eris shook her head. "Well, it''s made to make all those pretty dresses and clothes out in the front," Ke''Yan pulled out a black chest plate looking piece and sat it on top of the desk. "It''s also used to make this." What is that? Is that armor? Eris approached the desk and looked at Ke¡¯Yan with a look of curiosity. "Go ahead and touch it. You''ll be surprised." She studied the piece from all sorts of angels, and couldn¡¯t put her finger on why it looked so different. There were straps to hold the chest section up, as well as the back. There were even parts on the sides that looked detachable via clips. What is with this chest part? It doesn¡¯t look right. Her finger pressed against the black lining that seemed to cover the whole chest area. Almost reflexively she recoiled her hand from the sensation. ¡°It¡¯s soft!¡± Ke¡¯Yan chuckled from nearby, ¡°That¡¯s right. It¡¯s made with some really interesting stuff.¡± ¡°Is this armor the favor?¡± Ke¡¯Yan slapped the chest of the black armor with a smile, ¡°You won¡¯t just be looking at it. I want you to wear it.¡± "Why do you want me to wear it? It doesn''t even look like it''s my size," Eris said. ¡°Don¡¯t worry about that. Watch.¡± Ke¡¯Yan began to tug on straps and slide other pieces away. Parts slide around one by one as if it was a puzzle. ¡°See! Looks like it would fit you right?¡± Eris looked on with amazement, ¡°Wow. How does it work? Why are you showing me this?¡± ¡°Well, I don¡¯t have many people interested in this kind of stuff and I actually made this with my Nephew¡¯s size in mind. I¡¯ve been looking around for someone to help me with fitting for a couple of days now. That¡¯s why I just had to ask you; you¡¯re basically his size!¡± ¡°But why do you need someone else to wear it?¡± ¡°Because young lady, everyone has a different feel when it comes to armor. And pieces like this could feel very odd to someone other than me.¡± ¡°What¡¯s it supposed to feel like? Not soft? Is it suppose to be hard?¡± Ke¡¯Yan sighed and put the small bag on the table, ¡°You ask a lot of questions, Miss Eris, you don¡¯t need to be so skeptical. If you really want to know, let me put it on you. It¡¯s safe and I won¡¯t do anything you¡¯re uncomfortable with. Then you can have the Stelite and be on your way. How about it?¡± I don¡¯t know if I have time. I¡¯ve never gotten to see something like this though. I want to know what it¡¯s like, but can I trust her? She¡¯s an adult just like all the others, but she¡¯s also just a shopkeeper. Eris studied Ke¡¯Yan for a second, who seemed to see the doubt on upon her face. "All you have to do is wear it," Ke''Yan said. ¡°That¡¯s all I have to do?¡± Ke¡¯Yan shook her head softly, ¡°That¡¯s it. All you have to do.¡± ¡°Mmm, okay.¡± ¡°Great! I¡¯ll give you more if you let me study you for a bit.¡± ¡°Only for a bit, I have to leave soon and I¡¯m sure you were probably thinking of doing that anyway.¡± Ke¡¯Yan gave a wide smirk and chuckled as she put slapped the table, ¡°Wow. It¡¯s like you know me already!¡± She took no time to pick up the black armor and unclip strap. Small metal clips that held the shoulder strap ends disconnected leaving the armor wide open with room to jump in. Hooks and other cloth pieces unraveled to expose the inside. "This is really armor, right? It looks more like a vest." ¡°You aren¡¯t far off, dear Eris. This thing wasn¡¯t made from my idea alone. It¡¯s been something my grandfather had worked on long ago. I just wanted to try out something different. Been working on it for a long time now.¡± ¡°Where did he get this idea from? It¡¯s weird.¡± Ke¡¯Yan scowled as she tinkered with the armor, ¡°You are just something, you know that?¡± What? It looks weird. ¡°Anyway, it was the work of my granddad¡¯s father. Long ago, before grandad worked on it, it was supposedly something they made while part of a thing called a company. His father was part of a group that was supposed to test out things and see if they worked.¡± Ke¡¯Yan kneeled down with the armor side open. She then slid it over Eris¡¯s head and shifted it over her body. "My grandfather used to say all the time that his father always talked crazy. How it was dumb for them to use metal plated armor when there were so many different options before. That''s why when he proposed to make it with the other survivors of The Golden Tide, he was shut down because it was almost impossible to make at the time." Ke¡¯yan adjusted more clips and straps to make it fit it to Eris¡¯s body. ¡°Now after so long, me and grandfather found a new way to make this. But he died long ago and it¡¯s just me working on it in my spare time now.¡± A final click sounded out once Ke¡¯Yan had put a harness around Eris¡¯s waist. ¡°Finished.¡± Ke¡¯Yan said. ¡°How does it feel?¡± Eris moved her arms around and twisted about, ¡°Kind of, strange.¡± Ke¡¯Yan narrowed her eyes, ¡°Strange how? Or are you making fun of it again?¡± ¡°It feels, loose, yet strong.¡± ¡°Hm, alright. So it feels sort of like you can move around a lot right?¡± Eris nodded her head. ¡°Good! That¡¯s really good. Here I was worried it would feel to sniffling. Try putting your arms in front of you, then raise them in the air. ¡± As instructed, she did the movements, with relative ease. Oh? This is really light. It¡¯s nothing like the metal plates guards wear. ¡°Did you feel anything touching here touching your bicep?¡± ¡°Where is that?¡± Ke¡¯Yan chuckled and pointed at her own bicep, ¡°Right here silly.¡± Eris shook her head. ¡°Good, Good. Now just hold still for a bit. Let me grab something really quick.¡± Ke¡¯Yan walked behind Eris and grabbed something off of a nearby desk. As she rummaged through the desk, a couple of drawers opened and closed with a loud grinding noise. Seconds later, she reappeared with a notebook and other various items. ¡°What are you going to do with those?¡± Eris said. ¡°I¡¯m just going to write a couple of thing¡¯s down and test some things.¡± Eris looked at the items she had brought, one of which looked like a measurement tool. ¡°How long will this take?¡± Eris said. ¡°Ke¡¯Yan grinned as she brought the notebook to her face, ¡°Ooh, just a couple of minutes.¡± Lies! Announcement Hello! I''m sorry to say today that DLTC will be put on a long month hiatus due to me starting college. At the moment it seems a lot of work is being thrown about and there is no time for me to write. I will, however, write when I can. I just won''t be posting the chapters. The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. During this time, I hope you all have a wonderful June and look forward to the chapters that come out when I return! o7 -Khailz Chapter C2
Chapter Song: White Cloth
Chase laid on the floor unmoving as a result of the sphere''s affects. His body was strewn about as if he were a ragdoll. The room around him was in chaos. Bodies and lab materials were haphazardly thrown about. Workers who had been standing around waiting for Chase¡¯s procedure to start were limp and lifeless. Chase saw nothing other than the strange colored fog around him, colors he didn¡¯t even know of brushed past him constantly. On one hand, he felt entirely connected to his body, on another, it felt very distant. ¡°This will always feel strange no matter how many times it¡¯s done,¡± Chase said. His voice echoed into nothingness. The more he tried to listen out into the darkness, the more he could tune in on what was happening around his body. He could hear the faint sound so something sizzling, as well as the subtle drip of a liquid falling to the ground. ¡°From the sound of things, I guess we started. I¡¯m here too so I guess it went well. ¡° Chase looked at what he could tell was his naked body that had a slight glow. Already being used to seeing himself, he looked around for anything else that might be new within the strange void he stood in. ¡°Nothing. Before, all I could hear was voices, now there is nothing. I wonder if more tuning needs to be done? Guess I¡¯ll look into it more once I¡¯m out of here.¡± Chase sat down onto the seemingly invisible floor. With nothing to sit against, he laid on his back and gazed through the never-ending fog. The sky above it was as existent as the floor he sat upon, aside from the small dot of light that lingered far away out of reach. ¡°If this is the truth, then why can we not see it? Tell me A¡¯en. Up there is where they reside, yet we have no way of knowing how far this tunnel goes. Why?.¡± His question and search for an answer was met with silence. Chase sighed and closed his eyes, but he was not permitted to do so. Every time he tried, it was like looking back down onto himself. An out of body experience inside of an out of body world. ¡°I¡¯ll just sit here quietly then. All I need to do is wait for-¡± Sounds and echoes reverberated throughout the darkness. He could tell, to an extent, what was going on outside. The entrance to the room opened and the sound of glass being crushed underneath footwear could be heard from Chase¡¯s ears. ¡°Damn! I¡¯m glad we weren''t caught in this mess.¡± A woman said aloud, her Hispanic accent slightly changing her words. ¡°Is that Mari?! Her eyes are sizzling, do you see that?¡± ¡°I did and I¡¯m not trying to look again,¡± A deep voice said. ¡°Look, there¡¯s Chase, you got his clothes and gear right?¡± ¡°Yeah, yeah. I¡¯ll start,¡± the woman said. ¡°But damn, I wish they didn¡¯t need to be a part of this.¡± ¡°Well it¡¯s too late to back out now,¡± the man said. Chase could hear the crunch of more glass as the steps got closer to him. It was futile for him to try and do anything other than listen in on the happenings outside. ¡°God, why does he have to be so small,¡± A voice said from the abyss of Chase¡¯s vision. ¡°The least he could do is put some muscle on.¡±This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version. ¡°Araceli, that¡¯s so damn rude. Saying that while you aren¡¯t even looking at his upper body. The man would be devastated if he heard that.¡± the man said. ¡°Just hurry up and get him dressed so we can begin. We have about an hour before A¡¯en starts wrecking this place.¡± ¡°Bermil, I know,¡± Araceli said. ¡°Give me a hand with his eyelids will you.¡± ¡°Sure.¡± Bermil put his hand on Chase¡¯s face and opened his eyelids forcefully. Araceli placed a wooden tripod over his head that held a thin purplish crystal lens in the middle. She lined it up with his open eye and made sure his retina reflected the crystal. Out of a bag to the left of her, she pulled out a machine with the same type of crystal Harlan had before. The machine''s crystal was lower in brightness and more opaque than the one that destroyed the room. ¡°Okay, keep his head still so I don¡¯t mess up,¡± Araceli said. Bermil held his head with a free hand as best as he could, while Araceli placed the machine into a slot on the tripod. She slowly cranked the handle of the machine to spin the gears inside. A small tray filled with sets of even smaller crystals spun around over a larger crystal. Araceli stopped spinning and let it run in circles while she took out a bag of matches. She quickly lit a match and placed it over the glass pane at the top of the machine. With no delay, the small set of crystals produced a light that shone into the larger main crystal. A radiant white glow beamed down into the purple crystal on the tripod, directly into Chase¡¯s retina. Chase laid there as his companions did their work. He could hear the gears spinning from somewhere above him. As he laid there, he could see the fog turn into a color he could recognize, purple. The fog was no longer mist-like and instead looked like purple water. As if he were grabbed from behind, he was dragged far below the purple haze. With intense speed, a bursting headache ensued and soon all he could see was the shine of a purple beam. ¡°Araceli?¡± Chase said. His vision was blurred, but he knew only one other person who could bring him back correctly. ¡°Yes, I¡¯m here. You¡¯re fine right? Do you need help getting up?¡± Araceli removed the device from atop of him, Chase sat up on his own and held his head. ¡°I¡¯m fine, thank you. You¡¯ve gotten good at feeding it the right amount of input. Much less turbulent than the other attempts. Blurred vision and a small migraine seem to be the only effects that linger a bit now,¡± Chase said, ¡°I say that¡¯s not bad for the sixth time then,¡± Araceli said. Chase gave her a faint smile and stood up from the floor. Everything around him was still a twisted visual mess, but he could make out certain things. ¡°Where is Harlan?¡± ¡°RIght in front of you,¡± Bermil said. ¡°His body is just the same as all the other workers, fried.¡± ¡°Right. The damned fool. Here I thought I could somehow convince him to come aboard. I did a bad damned job.¡± Chase walked up to the body of his former best friend and squatted to see as much as he could. Harlan¡¯s face let off a horrid stench of burnt flesh. Various other liquids within his head bubbled out of any holes that protruded his skull. ¡°Twelve years and you still couldn¡¯t see how much of a failure this all was,¡± Chase said. He put a hand to Harlan¡¯s burned head and put his fingers to his eyelids. He tried to close his eyes, but the lids were too charred to move. ¡°If you only still had the heart you once had, maybe your soul wouldn¡¯t be taken over by a fury of guilty flames. Chase looked around the room for a moment. ¡°It¡¯s a shame I can¡¯t put any of you to rest,¡± Chase let out an exhausted sigh. ¡°But I hope that you can see the truth behind why this had to happen.¡± Chase reached down to the book in Harlan¡¯s hand and picked it up. The contents were of no importance but he needed something to hide the spent Crystal inside. The very object that caused the occurrence of otherworldly phenomena laid on the floor beside Harlan. While it destroyed the very being of every person in the room beside him, it sat cold on the floor as if it were a normal crystal . This was the Sevltiene Crystal, it laid near Harlan¡¯s hand on the floor. A¡¯en. It¡¯s about time I finally got a hold of you. ¡°Bermil, could I get a knife?¡± Bermil walked up to Chase and handed him his belt knife that was hidden beneath his white robe. ¡°Don¡¯t break it like you did the last one,¡± Bermil said. ¡°Yeah, I know..¡± Chase stabbed the knife into the book and cut a hole big enough to fit the crystal. The black sphered crystal was reduced to a clear opaque glass that could be seen through nearly perfectly. He picked it up and place it into the hole of the book. ¡°Alright, we should be fine to go now. A¡¯en didn¡¯t make a lot of noise did it?¡± ¡°We didn¡¯t hear too much across the hall. Hearing a bunch of bodies falling was a good enough indicator though,¡± Araceli said. ¡°I checked by the windows too and covered them after we walked in. We should be fine for avoiding commotion till A¡¯en starts again.¡± bermil said. ¡°How much longer do we have?¡± Chase said. ¡°We have about 30 minutes,¡± Bermil said. ¡°Alright. Let¡¯s leave the facility then. If we have this much time left then we can probably take a bit more supplies if possible.¡± ¡°Sounds good,¡± Araceli said. She rummaged through her bag and pulled out a crystalline base tranquilizer gun. ¡°Here Chase, take it.¡± Chase¡¯s vision had improved and was nearly cleared up entirely when he looked at Araceli. As she held out the gun to him, he thought she had a slight look of worry. Instead of grabbing the gun, held grabbed her arm and pulled her close to him. ¡°Chase,¡± Araceli said. ¡°I know. This is just the beginning,¡± Chase said. ¡°When we¡¯re done, we¡¯re going to the Edge.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. We both said we would go there. If the price to reach Circinus isn¡¯t cheap, we need to do everything we can to pay its price.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± Bermil said as he watched the two embrace. ¡°We will ALL, reach the Edge. My son didn¡¯t die for me to stop at the first step. I¡¯m as ready as you two are.¡± Chase chuckled and let go of Araceli, ¡°To reach our goal. Let¡¯s begin to go further. Even further than those before us.¡± He opened the book that held the spent Crystal. As he looked at it intently, a faint ring of light encircled his Iris. ¡°This isn¡¯t even the beginning of the beginning, but it sure as hell can be the start of something new.¡± Chapter 11
Chapter Song: Distant leaps to Circinus | Happenings
Ke¡¯Yan marked more areas with the chalk pencil she had and wrote small notes in her notebook. Eris looked at her all the while, trying not to doze off from standing for so long. "Annnd, done. I think that should be it." Eris glanced at the markings on the armor. Eris traced her fingers over various parts, ¡°You don¡¯t think this will make it hard to twist? If you put that piece there. It might mess up this part.¡± Ke¡¯Yan squinted at where she had marked and sighed, ¡°Hmm, you might be right. I¡¯ll just shift it over a bit. Let¡¯s see how that works. Ke''Yan was about to mark the chest piece again until Eris stopped her hand. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Ke¡¯Yan said. "I need to go," Eris said. ¡°Really? It hasn¡¯t been that long has it?¡± Eris shook her head, ¡°I have to go. Someone is waiting for me.¡± Ke¡¯Yan put the tools she held down on the desk and squatted to her level. ¡°Aww, that¡¯s too bad. You can¡¯t spare even a bit more? Just a tiny bit?¡± Ke¡¯Yan looked into her eyes with a slight curl to her frown. ¡°I can¡¯t. I¡¯m sorry.¡± Eris began to try and unstrap the armor. When she tried touching the first clip, Ke¡¯Yan¡¯s hands moved to it first. ¡°Damn, here I thought my charm would be enough. Guess I can¡¯t put on a face well enough. Oh well,¡± Ke¡¯Yan smiled and began to lend a hand. ¡°So you¡¯ll come back and help me some more right? I could use a little helper with my side projects.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t thin-¡± Eris stopped mid-sentence, her words trailed off when she glanced out of the open door to the outside world. Through the window, all she could see was shops and clouds, but something gave her an odd feeling. Something¡¯s coming. A danger. Ke¡¯Yan, tilted her head in confusion, but Eris was too busy searching the room. Her attention moved over to the tools on the desk slightly jiggling. When she fixated on them they moved even more erratically. Ke''Yan stopped unclipping the armor and looked at Eris, You feel that too rig-" A sudden shift within the room knocked them both onto their feet. The counters and armors that lined the walls clattered and clanged as a tremor raged. Eris looked up to see what happened, but couldn¡¯t make out what she was looking at, as everything around her swayed wildly. While on the floor, she tried moving closer to KE¡¯Yan, who was farther away and safer near the door. A tide? Eris tried moving quicker as she saw heavy items above her shake violently. When she was in reach of Ke¡¯Yan, she felt a tug on her chest and was brought to the floor. What? She looked down to see that a loose clip had gotten stuck inside a crack in the floor. As soon as she knew she was stuck, she tried to pull the clip out. Her fingers fumbled at it, trying to remove it at an angle and twist it in different motions from an odd angle. Another hard jolt of the ground rocked the room and along with it, many of the pieces of armor began to fall to the ground. After seeing one of the plates of armor land with a hard thud next to her, she started tugging at the strap vigorously. The amount of force she tried to generate wasn¡¯t enough due to how close she was to the floor. It became futile so she tried to take off the armor herself as quickly as she could. Before she could even attempt to remove it, her arm was snatched away and she was pulled so quickly that the strap broke off the vest. Her eyes swam to see what grabbed her. She was met with Ke¡¯Yan¡¯s bright brown eyes and a slightly angry expression. ¡°Ke¡¯yan.¡± ¡°Move!¡± An expression that insisted that talking be done later covered her face. With a shove through the opened door, she fell over into the front of the store, right behind the counter. At first, she was confused as to why she needed to be shoved so hard, but she realized a shove was better than death. A heavy sheet of black metal crashed down into the floor, nearly slicing into it perfectly. Eris''s eyes widened as she saw more things fall down into the same spot she was in a second ago. The room looked like it had a self-contained storm going on. It all quickly vanished when Ke''Yan slammed the door behind her.This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. Ke¡¯Yan¡¯s eyes searched rapidly around the room until they met with Eris¡¯s, ¡°Get under the counter! Now!¡± After hearing Ke''Yan bark an order so insistently, she scrambled to the underside of the counter where KE''Yan quickly joined her.
Ke¡¯Yan covered her head and looked at the ground angrily, ¡°Are you serious right now?!¡± Heavy thuds from the backroom made her expression even more irritated. The shaking continued, along with it, clothing racks and shelves began to quickly drop off their merchandise onto the floor as well. "I think it''s a tide," Eris said. ¡°The last one was something like a year and a half ago, why did it have to be the day I wanted to polish things up!¡± Ke¡¯Yan said. The small chirping crystal that sat above the door spat out it¡¯s tube constantly, as the door waved open and closed. The sound was nearly a solid tune that could be mistaken for the highest note on a flute. After another two minutes of squatting beneath the counter, Eris heard the chirping crystal''s tune begin to slow down. The rumbling that went on underneath her and the shop seemed to die down as quickly as it started. Within a matter of seconds, it had all but gone away. Eris peaked from the side of the counter to see the rest of the store. A hint of surprise lit up her face when she saw what looked like a wild animal had run rampant in the store. Even that wasn¡¯t enough to describe the damage that had been done. I¡¯m glad I¡¯m not a shopkeeper. She returned to her place underneath the counter and looked at Ke¡¯Yan, who happened to be looking at her as well. Ke¡¯Yan¡¯s eyes were nearly begging for an answer to what she saw around the counter. In response, Eris looked at her and shook her head in disappointment. Ke''Yan put her hands to the floor and lowered her head. A long benevolent sigh escaped her mouth. ¡°Is this punishment for missing my aunt¡¯s passing or was it the poor Elken I killed for its pelt?¡± Eris watched Ke¡¯Yan talk to herself, she looked like she would cry at any moment. She wanted to put a hand to her but she stopped before she could even lift a finger. Do I do something? What do adults do to help each other when things like this happen? A thought came to mind and she immediately put it to action. ¡°Ke¡¯Yan,¡± Eris looked at her brown eyes as she looked into hers in response. ¡°This isn¡¯t my fault, okay?¡± At first, Ke¡¯Yan looked at Eris with an irritated squint but it quickly disappeared and was replaced by a smirk. ¡°Of course it¡¯s not. Unless you¡¯re hiding some strange child power, I know you didn¡¯t do this.¡± Ke¡¯Yan¡¯s smirk was nearing a smile before a loud shout was rang from outside. ¡°AHH DAMMIT! DAMMIT DAMMIT DAMMIT! STOP!¡± Ke¡¯Yan sprang up from under the counter and looked at the front window pane. ¡°Oh damn!¡± Ke¡¯Yan said. Eris got up for a look too. She was taken aback by the fire raging atop a shop outside. The keeper was desperately trying to dowse it with a container of water and a large towel. ¡°I told that idiot to keep the gases away from the metals!¡± Ke¡¯Yan, turned around and ran around the counter. She looked back at Eris before she got too far, ¡°Eris you should get going. It¡¯s probably hectic around town.¡± "What about the Stelite?" Eris said. "Uhh," Ke''Yan was nearly jogging in place, "Just come back tomorrow I''ll make sure you get what you need. I need to go now! See you later, Eris!" Ke''Yan sprinted through the store and swiveled her head while she ran. Eris could hear Ke''Yan mutter a low "no no no" as she looked at the store before dashing out of the door. Eris walked through the store right after Ke¡¯Yan left and could hear a muffled yell, ¡°Lawrance you idiot, what did I tell you!¡± ¡°It wasn¡¯t me! I don¡¯t even remember putting that stuff there!¡± the shopkeeper yelled. She got to the door and looked at the fire for a few seconds. Other shopkeepers came running to help put extinguish it. She didn¡¯t stay too long to marvel at their fire fighting abilities. I need to get back. I hope the Inn isn¡¯t like the shops here. Eris took one last peek at Ke¡¯Yan and the others before she ran off to head to the Inn. It was slightly foggy compared to nearly an hour ago. The mildly empty town was now busy with people running around and helping each other with damages. Eris paid no attention to the rest of the town''s problems and continued to run back to the Inn. After a while, Eris made it to the stone archway entrance of the Inn. Slightly out of breath, she looked at the Inn for any signs of trouble. It looks, just like it did before. She swiveled her head for any outstanding details. Nothing. Eris walked down the stone path and headed up the stairs to the door. Before she opened the door, she heard faint sounds voices behind it. The voices became more apparent as she opened the door and peeked inside. A group of five people stood around the lounge area, two of which looked like a couple to her. The other three were a mix of ages and didn¡¯t look like they were related in any way. So we aren¡¯t the only guests, hm. Eris watched them converse as she came inside the Inn. ¡°You didn¡¯t get anything on you at all? How? There is soup all over my pants,¡± the man of the couple said. ¡°I drank the broth of course. I¡¯m glad that I eat so fast. We can wash it off later, okay?¡± the woman said. The woman looked at the man with a smile and grabbed his hand. Eris turned her attention to the other three. ¡°Last one was so long ago I forgot it even happens,¡± a man said. ¡°That¡¯s true, I was just about to use the bathroom when everything started shaking,¡± a woman said. ¡°My room was upstairs, felt like I was in a tree-house for a while!¡± another woman said. As interesting as their conversation was to Eris, she wanted to look for Anya. The voices died down as she walked down the hallway to Anya¡¯s room. She could hear a voice coming from an open door. Eris peaked inside and saw Anya next to a small pile of broken ceramic pieces. She was on her knees with a dustpan and small broom trying to reach under the bed for something. Anya muttered to herself while her hand explored the depths of the bed. The inside of the room looked clean enough except for the various items that had fallen off shelves. Small items like soap, cups, and lighting candles were spread around the floor. Eris stepped inside quietly, ¡°Anya.¡± A quick thump and small yelp resounded from where Anya was. She backed out from under the bed and rubbed her head. ¡°Ow,¡± Anya looked to see who interrupted her work. ¡°Oh! Eris, welcome back! Did you feel that tide too?¡± Anya said. Eris nodded and walked up to her, ¡°I did. Is everything alright here?¡± ¡°Mmmm sort of. There are so many rooms with broken lamps we need to clean. There are places with shelves that dropped stuff everywhere.¡± Anya said. ¡°A lot of work?¡± Eris said. Anya sat down on the bed and sighed, ¡°We saw thirteen rooms so far. Dad, wants me to count the rest after I clean up this one. How was the market? Did you find what you need?¡± ¡°It was, interesting. I might need to go back. Do you need help cleaning?¡± Anya suddenly sprang up with excitement lining her eyes, ¡°Will you?! I could work forever if I had you help me.¡± ¡°Then, I¡¯ll help too,¡± Eris said. Anya grabbed Eris¡¯s hand and hoisted it into the air with a gleeful smile, ¡°Partners!¡± Eris watched Anya do a quick dance. A smile was coming on when she had thought of the day she had. I feel like all I''ve done is help today. What would happen if I stayed a little bit longer? What will she do if I return home after this? Anya stopped dancing when she looked at Eris, ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± ¡°Nothing to worry about. Let¡¯s clean.¡± Anya''s expression changed slightly, she looked at her with a hint of skepticism, "Hmmm, okay. Let''s clean then." Anya walked over to the closet area, which had a few bottles of liquids on the floor. As she was about to pick them up, she stopped and looked at Eris. ¡°Hey, Eris,¡± Anya said. ¡°Hm?¡± Eris said. ¡°Where is Zeanis?¡± ¡°Huh? Who?¡± ¡°Zenais, the boy.¡± ¡°Oh, you mean Zeais. I¡¯m not sure. I just got here.¡± ¡°Zeais. That¡¯s right. Hmmm, okay.¡± Anya stood up and took off the white rag that covered her hair. ¡°We should go look for him, if we can get him to help, we can get done faster.¡± ¡°Okay. Let¡¯s look for him then. I¡¯m kind of getting hungry.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s go then. If we finish soon enough maybe I can get us some snacks.¡± ¡°Oh?¡± ¡°Yes, some really good ones too! It¡¯ll be faster if we go different ways.¡± ¡°I see, then I¡¯ll look too.¡± Anya nodded her head and walked over to the door, ¡°I¡¯ll go look around the bottom floor.¡± After she opened the door, a large barrier stood over her. ¡°Where are you off to, Anya?¡± Yale asked. ¡°Eris said she would help us. We were going to look for the other child to help too.¡± Yale walked into the room and looked around. He grabbed the bottles and began to walk out of the room, ¡°There¡¯s a basket in the hallway. Separate the good bottles from the leaking ones, if there are any.¡± ¡°Got it, Pa,- Dad. Let¡¯s go Eris.¡± Eris nodded and followed Anya out into the hallway. ¡°I thought you needed to finish the room first. He¡¯s fine with it?¡± Anya smiled, ¡°He¡¯s just a bit shy, I kind of know what he¡¯s thinking. He¡¯s going to finish that room while we go look for Zeais.¡± Anya said. "Oookay. If you say so," Eris said. ¡°It¡¯s fine. He¡¯d rather have help anyways if things are bad enough.¡± ¡°I see.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll go look this way then. If you find him call out for me and I¡¯ll join you.¡± ¡°Got it. See you. Again.¡± Anya gave Eris a wide smile and walked away. Eris stood there for a moment and looked out of the window that was near her. The day was cloudy and the sun was no longer showing warmth. It reminded her of a certain day out in the forest. A long time ago for her, that pained her in ways that couldn¡¯t be seen from the outside. She sighed and continued to walk down the hall.