《Ithaca》 Prologue So this is my first time writing a story, I''ll welcome any feedback to improve it. italics : thoughts "" speech ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I had a great life, normal, but good. I grew up in a healthy environment. My childhood was centered around sunshine, cartwheels, and games. My parents were rather easy going, although sometimes strict, they were also caring and protective. I went to school and did well in most of my studies, mainly literature and history. Although I didn¡¯t get a chance to have a ton of friends, I did have a circle of my own, both lovable and weird friends. Finishing high school, I didn¡¯t get into the college I wanted. That was a depressing moment for me but my friends and family continued to cheer me on. With a renewed effort, I concentrated solely on my studies in my university times. Getting out of college, I landed a job in the newspaper agency. I was in a hurry to further my life goals. But in less than a year, the agency shut down and I was laid off. It took me a half a year to get back on my feet. Now I am working in a magazine. It¡¯s not very popular but the wages are good. Overall, my life had been fairly pleasant. While living in a dangerous world, it was lucky that I was not involved in any major incidents in the 23 years of my life. My life had been fun, dotted with important events throughout time, and tomorrow is one of the most important events of my life. My wedding. If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.I was to be married to the nicest and greatest man I would ever know. I was surprised when he presented me with the ring even when I knew it all along. He is very honest and I love him dearly. I was prepared for an exciting and fun life together with him. However, my darkest days and greatest challenge took place, on the day my husband-to-be disappeared the day before our wedding. Language Barrier Aaron woke up with a start, only to find himself in an unfamiliar land. He was surrounded by trees on all four sides. There were soft and sweetly scented grass below his feet and a tiny creek meandered gently across the grass. The weather was just right for a picnic. However there wasn¡¯t supposed to be a picnic scheduled for today, it was suppose to be his wedding! Aaron looked around frantically, he didn¡¯t have a habit of wearing his watch in sleep so he couldn''t tell the time. Where am I??? Wasn¡¯t I at home last night? What time is it? I need to make it home on time! Questions and concerns like these coursed through his head. Judging by the air and surroundings, Aaron could tell he was somewhere in the mountains. Which was strange as he lived no where near any highland. That ruled out the possibility of a few friends pulling off a mean trick the day before the wedding. It might be possible that he was kidnapped but there was no point in leaving the captured stranded on a mountain without receiving a ransom of some sort. I¡¯ll find out the reason afterwards. The objective now is to find my way home. And so, Aaron made his way down the mountain, cutting through trees and bushes. Aaron couldn¡¯t help but notice how strange the mountain was. Leaves the wrong color, wood the wrong texture, pine the wrong smell. In addition, the light seeping through the trees danced around violently. As Aaron walked further in the mountain a peculiar mist surrounded him. The mist was purple with hints of blue and grey. As Aaron walked further the darker and thicker it became. Very soon he was struck by a massive headache and his ears felt as if a bee was buzzing inside. He held onto a tree for support but his legs gave out and his whole body fell to the ground. Black spots started forming in the corner of his vision. Aaron¡¯s mind went blank, he had no idea what was going on and all he could do was whisper in a cracked voice, ¡° Help! Somebody save me...He..help..¡± Before blacking out, Aaron saw a few men appearing from behind the trees, wearing unusual clothing and exotic masks. They were pointing at him excitedly and with their mouths, they shouted at him, shouted at each other, shouting something Aaron could not comprehend. Aaron woke up for a second time that day, but this time it was a different place than before. He woke up on something like a bed. Unlike the one he usually used, this bed was in the shape of a circle instead of a square, the mattress was several layers of cloth on top of a large circular stone so it wasn¡¯t extremely comfortable. His pillow was a rough piece of wood, thankfully the wood used wasn¡¯t too hard. The bed was located in a room made of stone. It was a pretty small room but the ceiling extended farther than what his eyes could see. There was a window but it was closed with a door of wood. The door in the room was also made out of wood. Besides the bed, the only pieces of furniture was a chair, a desk and a small carpet spread on the floor. These things took almost all of the room. Leaving only enough space to travel from the door to the bed and from the bed to the window. It seemed almost like the rooms in the medieval age. As Aaron observed these things the door gently creaked open and an old man holding a cane hobbled in. The old man¡¯s hair was a fuzzy white and the wrinkles surrounding his eyes spoke of experience coming from old age. They were also the proof of years of hardship and worry. The old man wore a brownish tunic of some sort that went down to his knees and grey baggy pants. Aaron was starting to believe that he either was in some place far away from home or he time traveled to a different era or perhaps both. Before the old man could say something Aaron spoke up first. ¡°Thank you sir, for inviting me here to your house when I was kinda dying in your backyard or something. But I really need to leave now, I¡¯m really late for something really really important, my wedding....and so¡­ would you be so kind to direct me back home? I¡¯m a bit lost here.¡± Aaron got off the bed, feeling the need to leave immediately. The old man looking confused for a while opened his mouth to speak, ¡°cdj$jskh%h uH#h *Kqoue#dwerkll¡± was how it sounded to Aaron. Bewildered, Aaron asked, ¡°Would you mind saying that again? I didn¡¯t quite catch that.¡± ¡°ji*)H$kbv#jgt@fy!fuj?iI8hJH^¡± the old man responded. It took a moment for Aaron to get it but after a while he understood that the old man was speaking in a different language and was not actually a senile old man speaking jumbled up gibberish. He then noticed that the old man had also caught on and was waving around to get his attention. Aaron looked at the old man who kept on pointing to himself and saying something. Soon Aaron realized that the old man was trying to introduce himself. If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. Aaron listened closely, the old man¡¯s name sounded something like [Shadwrf] with a slur in the R. Carefully, Aaron pronounced the name, ¡°Shadwrf¡­¡± The old man¡¯s , or Shadwrf¡¯s eyes lit up and he made a gesture with his hands. Then he pointed to Aaron as if to ask his name. Aaron pointed to himself and said his name. Shadwrf slowly mumbled out Aaron¡¯s name with a thick accent which Aaron did not doubt he himself had an accent when pronouncing Shadwrf¡¯s name. Aaron had never heard this language before even when he had once prided himself to be semi-fluent in 9 languages. Aaron contemplated on how to ask Shadwrf where he was. The best he could think of was pointing to himself, gesturing around the room, and giving an universal gesture for why, a shrug. Shadwrf gave a perplexed expression at this so Aaron repeated the act. Finally, after a couple times, Shadwrf finally got it. He went up to the desk and slid out a plate of wood from a drawer and also grabbed a greyish blue stub. He sat on the chair next to the bed and started drawing. Curiously, Aaron peeked over and observed Shadwrf¡¯s drawings. It wasn¡¯t anything fancy but simple enough to understand. Shadwrf held up the plate. There was a little guy to the left and smaller people behind the guy. Shadwrf pointed to the little guy and then at Aaron. Aaron nodded to show understanding. He drew another guy to the right, one that was obviously older, this one was himself. he then drew a line in the middle. On the right side Shadwrf drew some swords and other weapons, there was also a dead guy lying in his own pool of blood. At last, he circled the little Aaron and drew an arrow across the vertical line. He then drew another little Aaron on the right side and smudged out the weapons and the dead guy. Thus ending his drawings. Truthfully, Aaron understood exactly what Shadrwf was trying to convey, but it was just too far from reality. A man gets teleported to a different world to save it from chaos. This is way too much like the books Iris keeps reading to me. Is this old man kidding with me? Why me?This is not possible, absolutely not. Feeling extremely irritated, Aaron grabbed the tiny stub Shadwrf used as a drawing utensil and drew a large X on the right side of the plate. Scribbled out the arrow across the line and drew a circle around the picture to the left. Throwing the little stub on the ground to signal the end of discussion. Shadwrf looked at him mournfully speaking in his own tongue, seeming to apologize. Feeling remorseful for his actions, Aaron just shook his head and pointed to his bed and himself trying to tell Shadwrf that he was only tired and wanted Shadwrf to leave. It took him a while to understand but when he did he rose to leave. He glanced back a few times and when he was halfway through the door he mumbled something in a soft tone before closing the door shut. As soon as Shadwrf left, Aaron darted towards the window. The doors were a bit stuck but when Aaron forcefully pulled on it, the doors opened. The windows had no glass so when Aaron opened the doors a cool gust of wind entered the room. Aaron was trying to escape this place but when he opened the windows, he was shocked by the sight he saw. He was still in the mountains and there were many trees, that were glowing. But what was really astonishing was the night sky. There were no stars and there were three moons. Aaron slumped down and fell to his knees. The reality of the situation suddenly struck him like lightning. He really was in a different world. There was no point in escaping when he did not know anything about this world, not even the language, let alone the direction home. As he was in despair and all hope seemed to have lost, something cold and metallic pressed against his chest. With trembling fingers, Aaron took out the locket he had always hanging around his neck. He flipped open the locket and there was a picture of Iris. It was about a year ago when she gave it to him and it was only less than a year when he promised to be with her always. A spark of hope flickered into life and his determination was revived. Whispering silently where no one could hear, Aaron made an oath to himself and to Iris, ¡° I Will definitely return home, so please wait for me.¡± And maybe somewhere, across time and space, another voice responded, ¡° I will.¡± ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I thought it would be interesting to write about a language barrier so, no there will not be some sort of magic that would make the MC suddenly know the language. This also serves as a mystery element since it''s mostly from the main characters perspective... by the way, [ ], symbolizes how the word sounds to the main character. Thnx for reading XD City-States 3 months had passed since our hero has come to reside in our home. His appearance was a surprise but we are glad that he appeared in our mountains rather than the enemies lands. Honestly, when I first saw him,it was hard to believe that he was the hero we were waiting for, the one who would save our country and end the chaos. He had a mop of dark curls that was cut short, like the people of the far east. He was shorter than our average male but had a rather muscular build. However, what made me doubt his legitimacy was that the hero in the prophecy and the man himself was very different. I must admit that we were naive to believe that the he or would speak the same language, after all he did come from a world unlike our own. He seemed short tempered and stubborn at first but slowly he proved himself to be friendly and strong willed. What made me to believe he was the hero we were waiting for was his eyes. They were a forest green. No man has ever seen such color of eyes in our land. He had the blessing of the mountains and forests. It was foretold that he would have an exotic feature to disguise himself from normal people. In his case it must be his eyes.. He must have been shocked to arrive here on the first day. I thought he would have left that day but when I came to his room he other morning, I was greeted with those pair of eyes, renewed in spirit, as if it was glowing like the night trees. He has started to learn our language and customs. He is a studious learner and adapts quickly. Today I will ask him, his mission and choice. *** Aaron looked at his tray of food. There were vegetables, meat, some sort of bread related thing, and soup. Aaron gulped as he lifted up a piece of meat. After living here for 3 months, Aaron thought he had gotten used to all the strange things but the food still proved to be a challenge. Aaron drew the piece of meat closer to his mouth. In an instant he popped the meat into his mouth, attempting to swallow it in one go. But the moment the meat touched his tongue, Aaron immediately reached for the water but he was too late. The meat tasted salty and spicy to the extreme. Almost every food here was either super salty or super spicy. The flavor of the meat was not the worst thing. the worst thing was the texture. After coming in contact with his mouth the piece of meat turned into mush. the texture after that was similar to oatmeal plus water. Once again, Aaron was reminded of how different this world was compared to his. Aaron choked out the piece of meat and washed his throat with water. At least water tasted the same. Giving up on the meat, Aaron turned his attention to the bread-like object. It looked like bread, it felt like bread, but it was not bread. Aaron ripped off a tiny piece and ate it. The bread had a very sharp taste, it was hard to describe, but if Aaron had to compare it to something back on Earth, he would say that the bread-like object tasted awfully similar to window cleaners. (Not that he ever attempt to taste it of course) The texture of this food was what earned the nickname Aaron gave it; The Dissolving Bread. The thing dissolves the moment it is in contact with moisture. It was easier to eat them than the meat but just as nasty. Aaron decided to skip the soup. A wise decision that was. The soup was freezing cold and for some reason there was sand mixed inside. And Aaron could not tell if it was meant to be eaten or not. Aaron gave out a deep sigh, it was vegetables again. Their texture was fine but like water, they were also tasteless. Munching on the greens a light tapping sounded at his door. -Come in, I mean- ¡°Come in¡±, Aaron corrected himself. He had started learning the language used here but he had a hard time using it normally. At first, the language was just a jumbled up string of syllables without any grammar. The lessons in the beginning were excruciating. Mindlessly memorizing the sentences was torture. It was difficult and very very different from the languages on Earth. It bore no resemblance to any language Aaron knew of, and that was why it was so hard to learn. Learning new words and everyday conversation was frustrating but what was even more frustrating was Aaron¡¯s own inability to converse with the people. To obtain information about this world and clues to get back home. So he learned and studied strenuously. Slowly, Aaron began to love the language, love the pattern less sentences, the double or quadruple meaning words. This mindset allowed Aaron to learn quickly. Even though his pronunciation was as bad as the food here and speaking like a normal person was still a level beyond him, he could still get by. Shadrwf came in the room and greeted Aaron cheerfully. This old man seemed harmless but Aaron knew there was more that meets the eye. There was something fishy about him and Aaron made it his goal to find that out. ¡°Would you like to accompany me for a walk?¡± Shadwrf asked. Aaron raised his eyebrow at this. Whenever this old man asked for a walk it was always an excuse to talk about something important, concerning himself. One of the things he found out throughout these few months was that there was a war happening between two countries, the East and the West, countries that Aaron had not grasped their names yet. There were also other factors concerning the war but it was a bit too hard to understand. Anyways, Aaron himself was supposed to be a Hero from a prophecy or something that would end the chaos and bring peace to the world. All of which were not included in Aaron¡¯s goals. His sole purpose now was to go back home but he did not know how. It was best to first go with this nonsense first and then find the way home. But Aaron was getting impatient and awfully homesick. Grasping the locket that hung around his neck, Aaron followed Shadwrf out his room. The stone floor felt cool under his toes as he walked from corridor to corridor. Although he had been here for 3 months already, he didn¡¯t have much time to explore the fortress. The people were tall here and liked to wear their hair long. The fortress itself was all brown and grey but once outside, you would be greeted by the beauty of nature. The lush greenery outside was breathtakingly beautiful. The scenery at night was also different. According to this world, trees can glow at night and they classify trees by their color at night. So technically there were only 8 different types of trees here. This mountain mainly had trees the color of yellow and orange. When seen from afar the whole mountain really looks like a blazing fire at night. Aaron glanced at the sun to tell the time. The sky in this world was also a very curious thing. Not only are there no stars and there are three moons but the sun waxes and wanes like the moon. The largest moon of the three covers the sun at night time slowly gives way to the sun at dawn. At noon the sun is half covered by the moon like it is now. The two of them strolled around the woods in a pleasant silence. None of them spoke for several minutes. Finally Shadwrf broke the silence. ¡°Do you...want to go back from where you came?¡± he asked Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.Aaron nodded firmly without hesitation. He had a family and home back at Earth. He had ties and bonds and promises to keep. This world was not for him to stay. Shadwrf looked a bit uncomfortable with his direct answer and struggled a bit to answer back. ¡°I...understand. I believe you are the one sent to save our world but...you also have your own priorities...here sit down, i want to show you something.¡± Aaron obediently sat on a slab of rock as Shadwrf pulled out a rolled up piece of paper from his robe. He unrolled the paper to reveal a map. Unlike the map Shadwrff used to teach Aaron about the world, this one had red dots all over the map. Seeing Aaron confused look at the map, Shadwrf coughed to begin explaining. ¡°Let¡¯s just say that although we have different goals but the means to achieve it is the same¡­ Okay, so in our world we mainly have 2 continents, the east and the west which is at war now. We are on the west side. The military power of both sides are basically equal at the moment¡± Shadwrf pointed to the west. It was old information to Aaron already but he patiently listened and nodded for Shadwrf to continue. ¡°We also have [Estu-Denir], which are independent countries but are smaller, like a city.¡± Shadwrf moved his finger to the red dots. The definition sounded pretty much like a city-state. There were city-states all over the world though. Aaron estimated the amount of city-states numbered up to several hundred. ¡°These City-States are very strange and most are pretty powerful. We need an overwhelming amount of power to win this war.¡± Aaron nodded. He could guess where the old man was going. He and his country needed an alliance with these city-states but Aaron couldn¡¯t tell how it was relative to him. ¡°These city-states bypass what is considered normal. They¡¯re very secretive and mysterious. They can use magic and other supernatural things. In fact it wouldn¡¯t be strange for them to be able to teleport or summon things¡­.¡± Aaron got it. Shadwrf was trying to say that one of the city-states might be responsible for his appearance in this world. And if he wanted to be back home he would need to knock on every door of the several hundred city-states scattered across the world conveniently giving Shadwrf and his people a chance for negotiating an alliance. ¡°It¡¯s your choice to believe me or not but we are setting off tomorrow morning. you¡¯re welcome to stay or wander off in the world. You¡¯ve got choices but you got to choose quickly.¡± Aaron took a step back to think things through. First of all, there¡¯s no proof that any of the city-states are responsible for me being here. Second of all, the sheer amount of distance and destinations I need to cover is tremendous. How many months is it going to take? This is a gamble, but at least I¡¯m going somewhere. Aaron nodded to accept Shadwrf¡¯s offer. Grasping his locket, he convinced himself that it was a right decision. Shadwrf looked kind of uncomfortable with his decision and awkwardly added, ¡°To be honest, that¡¯s not all the city-states there are. This map is outdated by at least a few centuries...and on top of that, some city-states cannot be drawn on a map¡­¡± Let me correct that. How many years is this going to take! *** Erika looked nervously at the door. She hadn¡¯t come for some time and was more than worried. Catching her last breath, she tightened her grip on the door knob and turned the door open. The smell of old books and coffee greeted her. The room was filled with books. They were on every shelf and piles upon piles of books surrounded an open area next to the window. Sitting casually on a comfortable red bean bag, a women was reading one of her many thick books. Her golden hair cascaded down to her waist and fair complexion complemented well with her soft brown eyes. The moment she turned her head and saw her visitor her eyes lit up like the many stars in the sky. In short, she was beautiful. A beauty in which Erika was once envious of, but not anymore. ¡°Erika! Long time no see. How have you been?¡± She cried out excitedly. ¡°I¡¯ve been fine, Iris. It¡¯s been a while.¡± Erika replied shyly. In fact it had been a bit more than 2 months since they last met. ¡°I¡¯m sorry that I haven¡¯t been here for a while, but seriously you need to go out some time. It¡¯s not good to shut yourself in like this.¡± Iris pouted and stuck her tongue out to Erika like a little kid. Erika felt glad to see Iris being so active and being more like herself, unlike 2 months ago. ¡°What are you reading?¡± Erika made herself comfortable on the carpet while initiating a conversation. Iris beamed as she held out the cover of the book for Erika to see. ¡°The Odyssey. It¡¯s about a man going from place to place trying to find his way back home, Ithaca.¡± ¡°Ithaca?¡¯ ¡°Yup, it¡¯s a real place you know. It¡¯s not some imaginary place. I¡¯ll show you the picture.¡± After that, none of them spoke for a while. Erika fidgeted nervously while Iris flipped through the pages to find the right page. Finally Erika asked the question that had constantly been in her mind the last few months. ¡°You¡¯ll still wait for him right? My brother¡­¡± Iris looked a bit surprised by the question but quickly regained composure. She seemed to understand where the question came from and smiled to relax Erika. ¡°Sure. Just like how the wife in this story waits 20 years for her husband. Of course, I¡¯m not as patient.¡± ¡°But...but he might really be gone for good...I mean you¡¯re not married yet...you¡¯re better off- Iris interjected suddenly. ¡°I was married the day I accepted this ring.¡± Iris said with a serious tone unlike before as she held up her left hand. There, on her ring finger was her engagement ring, that she wore everyday. She had such a resolve in her eyes that Erika couldn¡¯t help but be moved by it. All feelings of doubt and fear swept away in that instant as she made up her mind. ¡°Alright! I¡¯ll wait for my stupid brother with you! When we see him I¡¯ll personally beat him up for you. You''re just too good for such an incompetent brother like him.¡± Erika boasted loudly. A close friendship formed between the both of them. And on that evening, laughter and cheer erupted from that small yet cozy room filled with books. ------------------------------------------------ This longer than i intended. I tried to describe the new world in detail but it was pretty long. I''m also trying to prevent the main character from speaking to much since it has only been 3 months:)