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| | Abstraction - Series | |
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46
Posts : 58 Join date : 2015-12-07 Age : 26
| | | | 46
Posts : 58 Join date : 2015-12-07 Age : 26
| Subject: Re: Abstraction - Series Fri Jan 18, 2019 3:29 pm | |
| Introduction Miles of blue, as far as the eye could see, stretched across the great horizon. The air was unexplainably fresh here, and it held a sense of freedom no one dared to match. Just inches away the invisible barrier stood - the one thing that separated Archandelle from the beyond. A place unknown to any of us, and a place the royals planned to keep that way.
“Ahh” A gentle voice fluttered from my left side. “How gorgeous it is here, I only wish we could see the ground.”
I nodded “If only, then we might have a clue as to what life is like beyond this place.” a sigh escaped my breath as thoughts anxiously raced through my brain. I knew it was coming, it always did when we came here. My ears twitched awaiting her voice to bring volume to the currently silent question.
“When?” Jay glanced at me. I could feel her gaze but my own refused to meet hers. “When are we going to escape this place?”
I held my breath and a moment of silence passed. It was the same as always. She didn’t seem to get the hint that things were changing and I could never go. I could never leave Archandelle. My responsibilities laid upon these clouds and nowhere else. It was all but a silly childish dream, born of curiosity and raised by imagination. It was not, and never to be, a reality.
“Not now Jay, not yet” I replied and bit my lip. I finally turned to look at her. Her eyes still bright and filled with wonder. They held that same spark that would ignite our wild and unattainable dreams. That same luster that gave birth to that perfect fairy tale we imagined for ourselves when we were younger. “We - we aren’t ready” I regretted to tell her.
She huffed and looked away. “That’s what you always say… Yet, you are never willing to do anything to prepare for our future… So tell me..” she sat down beside me and nuzzled into my fur. “Tell me, how will we ever be ready if all you ever care about is pleasing your father? You know his wishes do not uphold our own.”
I remained silent as she pulled away and looked back at me. She expected me to answer, but I had no reply. I stared intently at my paws below, standing on the fluffy white clouds we called home and gave a sigh. This was our reality, whether it’s what we wanted or not, it was something I’d have to accept, but Jay was making that quite difficult.
She continued to look at me, her bright green gaze seeping into me pleadingly as she began to speak once more. “Why don’t we just go for it?… just jump! See where the wind blows us!” she leaped into the air and spread her golden feathered wings letting them flap in place as she hovered above me. “If you refuse I’ll just go without you!”
At this point I raised my gaze, allowing my eyes to meet hers and glared at her sharply. I had to make her understand. “No, Jay, that’s stupid!” I sighed. “It’s dangerous down there, you’d never survive alone… heck… we’d never survive together! I was…. I was hoping you’d realize by now… We belong here, we can’t just leave everything and everyone behind!”
She glared back at me. I could tell she was trying to hold a solid expression, but it would continue to flip between angered, and just plain upset. “How would you know!?” she huffed. “How would anyone know!? No one’s ever been there! The stories we hear about life beyond this place are just made-up nonsense… you know that! And why can’t we just leave this place behind, it’s never benefited us in any way! What…. What kind of nonsense has gotten into you?!”
A low growl escaped my breath before I snapped back at her “what kind of nonsense has gotten into you Jay?! This is where our families are, and they’ve taken care of us since the day we were born! Also what about Noctis, Cyrus, Jess, Bellatrix, Nigel, Pipin…. Myra? Don’t you care about any of them? You’re telling me you’re just going to up and leave without saying anything to anyone!”
I huffed and looked back to my paws. “Look… life isn’t some sort of game where you can just run away and expect everything to just be okay… I hate to burst your bubble, but that’s not how it works! And you’re right, no one’s been there! Not me, not you, but no one. Likewise, no one knows what’s down there… so you’re pretty much putting your faith into the complete unknown if you leave… and for all we know… you aren’t going to survive your first night! So why don’t we just head back to the city and we can talk things out there? Just… just think rationally for a minute, please!
I stood to my paws. Jay remained silent, simply flapping her wings in the sky above me. “Come on… please?” I looked up at her pleadingly before I finally heard her sigh.
“Fine… but, but… I’m not giving up yet Eon. I’m not going to be stuck here for the rest of my life!” Her blue eyes began to get watery, making me feel a bit upset myself.
“Okay…” I replied softly. “Let's just head back.”
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| | | 46
Posts : 58 Join date : 2015-12-07 Age : 26
| Subject: Re: Abstraction - Series Fri Jan 18, 2019 3:33 pm | |
| Part I - The Azure There it was again. The hypnotizing blue stare peering deep into me. Seeing something I didn't see. Knowing something I didn’t know. I could not see the rest of the beasts face that hid behind the silver mask, but those eyes were already too much to handle. Glowing a burning azure, they’d ignite the next scene. The world would blur, then fade to dark.
Next thing I knew I was beneath the shadows of a labyrinth. The blue-eyed beast would turn and run. This is how it always was. It’s nine ghostly tails flowing gracefully behind it, outlined by a blue glow. A warm, familiar glow that called for me to chase it, and chase I did.
I chased the beast through the maze of dark tunnels, passively noting each turn I took. Right, left, right, right, left, and poof! The beast would disappear leaving me alone at a dead end. Taking a few steps forward, I embraced what I knew would come next.
A row of candlelight ignites, one-by-one, revealing old runes amongst the darkness. The first, a bright azure one, the same color as the beast's eyes. The second was a bright green. The third, a burning yellow, the fourth a royal purple and the fifth and final rune was a blood-red color.
Each of the stones had strange symbols made of lines, swirls and dots etched onto them. I examined them closely - this time I was determined to remember what they looked like. Though I knew I only had limited time to study them.
Soon the labyrinth began to shake and crumble. The ground caved in beneath me, and for whatever reason, my wings refused to cooperate. I fell down a portal - a mass blending of every color imaginable. Many different realities flashed before me in a kaleidoscope-effect, but they’d flicker away too quickly to get a good glimpse of them. I was still unsure of what to make of it all. Though it had happened time and time again, the experience never ceased to shock me.
I eventually landed in what appeared to be another labyrinth, though this one was far roomier. The fall didn’t seem to bother me a bit. No scars, no bruises, no aching bones. I turned my gaze upright to see a large copper pedestal standing in front of me. It was beginning to rust, chips of it slowly being broken away. A few cracks crawled up its spine like vines on a tree-trunk. It had obviously been a while since anyone had bothered to polish it up. At the top of the pedestal was a bright azure glow. The comforting glow I seemed to recognize so well at this point.
I slowly stood onto my paws and stretched my wings out. Soon I’d leap into the air and use them to carry myself upwards towards the glow. I was compelled to do so. Some may compare it to a moth and a flame. But, I knew there was more to it than that. This was something I had to do.
I knew what was up there, I had done this before. Though many questions still lingered. What does it mean? Why was it here? Why was I here? They would all remain unanswered. I never seemed to get any more clues or subtle hints that brought me closer to the answers.
The top of the pedestal cradled one of the runes from before, the blue one. It shined so brightly it managed to light the entire space with it’s comforting blue light. My eyes were open wide as I stared at it. Slowly, I reached out to touch it. All I wanted to do was feel that stone against my paw. Become connected to it, become one with it; but it was all too much. A strange vibration emitted from the stone, it channeled through me, through the labyrinth, and all the way to the waking world. It forced me to wake up, and once again, I was in my secluded cloud home.
I sighed and rolled over, my eyes barely open. The sunlight was nearly blinding and it was impossible to open them all the way. “Morning…..already?” I yawned and lifted my head up off the clouds. Slowly, my eyes began to adjust to the light, enough to get them open anyway. I yawned a second time before stumbling to my paws and lazily padding towards the den where my father was waiting for me.
“Perk up son,” my father said as soon as he noticed me and frowned as he realized I was till half asleep. “You’re late getting up, as usual, it's time to start breaking that habit. If you’re ever going to take over you need to be up with the sun and ready to embrace a new day,” he spoke, in his usual serious tone. A stern expression overtook his face. “Your brother seems more suited for the position than you are, and he’s not even the heir”
I had heard this before, it was nothing new for him to compare me to my brother. I was used to it at this point and didn’t let it bother me. I knew Orion was the favorite, he made that very clear.
“Unfortunately” he continued to complain. I let him ramble on only half paying-attention to what he was saying. I was too tired to deal with it right now, and arguments would be fruitless anyway. “It is a tradition that the first born is hier, which means you will someday inherit the throne.”
I sighed and sat down on the fluffy terrain that covered the entire cloud kingdom. “The thing is…” I spoke hesitantly. I didn’t want to start an argument, but I had a valid point on my mind that was just nagging at me. “My brother is a solar aerial, so it’s in his nature to be up with the sun. Me on the other hand… I’m supposed to be nocturnal.” I spoke then went quiet; going on a rant wasn’t going to help me right now.
“Not an excuse!” my father snapped at me. “If you are going to lead someday, you have to be diurnal. Most of our race is up at daylight and you should be too! As an heir, your job is to lead by example. You need to be there for them. Leave the nightlife to the ruffians.”
I began to grumble. “Ruffians?” I looked up at him. He still had that same emotionless expression on his face. “Lunars are not ruffians just because they are nocturnal,” I said, starting to get a bit aggravated, but, I decided to force myself to keep quiet and let my father continue.
He gave a nasty smirk, which irritated me even more. “Not all of them, heaven knows my son won’t be, but, a good chunk of them are less than tasteful.”
Oh, how I wanted to snap back at him. Tell him that just because someone had different tastes than his own, it didn’t make them any less. But, he had the perfect utopia all planned out in his head, and anyone who didn’t fall into this ideal set of characteristics was considered a ruffian. There was no arguing with him. There was no option to meet him halfway. Things were to go according to his plan, and no other direction, which aggravated me to no end. But, I had to respect the man. He had somehow managed to earn the love and admiration of his entire kingdom, and his kingdom always came first. When it came to keeping the aerial safe, he knew no bounds. He had dedicated his entire life to protecting his subjects, and that was something I could look up to if nothing else.
There was a moment of silence. Apparently, he had nothing else to say, and I was still holding my mouth shut, choosing the silence over arguing.
“Why don’t you go meet your mother” he began to speak again, though this time softer and less stern. “I believe she picked some krites. Go eat and meet me at the drop-off in 15 minutes.” I stood and looked at him in shock. “The drop-off!? But -”
He stopped me halfway through my sentence. “It is okay, you will be with me, and it’s time I showed you” he spoke, before exiting the den.
I stood back onto my paws and began to wonder why he was bringing me there now? He had always told me I mustn't go there, that it was forbidden. Of Course, I didn’t listen, Jay and I snuck to the drop-off every so often… there was a strange sense of freedom there we just couldn’t stay away from. But, there was really nothing there but open sky, and I began to ponder what it might be he wanted to show me, and why wait til now?
I would have to wait and see what it was he wanted to show me. I really wanted some of those Krites anyways; I was starving!
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| | | Eden Admin
Posts : 114 Join date : 2012-06-17 Age : 27
| Subject: Re: Abstraction - Series Sun Jan 20, 2019 10:29 pm | |
| I am so invested in this story, 46! Your world and character building is fantastic; I cannot wait until the next installment. I wonder what his father will show him at the drop-off... | |
| | | 46
Posts : 58 Join date : 2015-12-07 Age : 26
| Subject: Re: Abstraction - Series Mon Jan 21, 2019 10:54 am | |
| Thank you Eden! I hope to have the next part up soon. | |
| | | 46
Posts : 58 Join date : 2015-12-07 Age : 26
| Subject: Re: Abstraction - Series Tue Jan 22, 2019 8:46 pm | |
| Part II - Slice of Life I gradually made my way towards the courtyard, soon seeing my mother and Orion. The same fluffy white terrain that covered everywhere else also filled the courtyard. Though here there were open skies above. I weaved my way through the maze of pots that decorated the courtyard, each one spouting plants ranging in size from tiny saplings to 10-foot tall trees. There were rumors that on the ground some trees grew to hundreds of feet. Here in the clouds, trees only grew to about a dozen feet tops.
“Good morning honey!” my mother called out to me. My ears perked at the sound of her voice and I began trotting in her direction. She spoke as I approached. “Did you happen to see your father? He had said he wanted to talk to you.”
I nodded “Yeah, we talked,” I said in response, though I didn’t want to tell her the details of the conversation.
My mother was much more soft-hearted than my father was. Sometimes she would even defend me when he’d start complaining about how horrible of a heir I was. Though as I grew older, she seemed to be keeping her distance more and more. She didn’t jump in to defend me as much as she used to. I assumed she realized it’s about time I start facing hardships on my own, and I didn’t completely disagree. I could take care of myself - even with a father who would pick out every imperfection I had to use it as a weapon against me.
“Good. Now, why don’t you go grab yourself some of those krites ” she gave me a smile and I nodded in response before walking over to one of the bushes. The buds had ripened to gorgeous silvery berries that boldly showed against the emerald leaves of the plant. I grabbed hold of one to the twigs and pulled, separating the branch from the rest of the bush. From there I plucked the berries off.
The sweet and tangy flavor was subtle, yet satisfying. They didn’t last very long, and once I was finished I trotted over to Orion. He was a quiet individual, and it usually took someone else to initiate the conversation, though this time, he spoke first. He looked up at me and in an instant, he knew why I had approached him. “It happened again, didn’t it?” he asked, though pronounced it as a statement more so than a question.
I sighed “yep.” Orion was the only one in my family whom I had told about my dreams. I had done so hoping he could give me some advice. Despite us being the same age, he was definitely the wiser of the two of us. It was pretty obvious, actually. I’m sure many others agreed with my father that he would be the one better suited for the throne. Heck, even I agreed, and I’d gladly give away my birthright to him if only I could.
It seemed even Orion couldn’t help me though. He had no idea what it meant either, though he still found it rather peculiar. He agreed with me that it could have some sort of message.
“Have you told father yet?” he questioned. He always asked me every time the dreams would come up in a conversation, and the answer was always the same.
I shook my head in response, “I don’t want to tell him, it’s not his business.” There really wasn’t a big reason why I hadn’t told my father. It was more of a grudge than anything else. It just seemed like the less he knew about my life, the better.
My brother's golden eyes stared into mine, grabbing my attention. “I know” he spoke softly, yet held a hint of confidence in his voice. “But if anyone would know what it means, it's him.”
I looked away and began to mutter “Maybe I will another time, I don’t know.” I gave a sigh before finishing my response “just not today”
I gave a light huff. “Speaking of father” My eyes rose again to meet his as I continued speaking. “He wants me to meet him at the drop-off in a few minutes.”
“The drop off?” Orion questioned, though seemed less shocked about it than I was. “Do you know why?” he looked at me, cocking his head slightly to the left.
“No idea” I replied. I honestly didn’t have a clue. “I find it strange he’s letting me go there.”
“Hmm” Orion huffed, his bright yellow gaze dropping downward. “Maybe it’s something important” he replied in his usual soft tone of voice. “I’d make sure, you’re not late for this one” he continued and looked back up at me.
“Yeah…” I sighed. “He’d wring my neck if I was”
Orion gave a slight chuckle. “Now, now” he spoke, his voice finally starting to perk a bit. “Father’s not that bad you know. Things could be much worse, there are many aerial who would do anything to become a noble, and we’re part of the royal family… Heck… You’re the freaking heir.” he continued. “Do you have any idea how many people envy you?”
“I know” I nodded in reply. “The funny thing is, I envy a lot of them. They have so much more freedom than I do, and can make decisions for themselves… very rarely do I get that opportunity. I’m always told what to do, how to do it, when to do it, and I’m always being watched to make sure I never stray from that path.”
Orion chuckled a bit more. “Well...” he said. “That never seemed to stop you.”
I huffed. “I guess you're right” I said, giving a slight smirk. “It doesn't stop me from doing what I want to do. Though father acts like I'm a curse or something.”
“A curse?” Orion’s expression turned serious. “I don’t know about that… and you know curses aren't something to joke about, it's a very real thing you know.”
I nodded. “That brings me to another theory.” I looked to Orion who was starting to look concerned. I thought for a moment and concluded I wasn’t going to finish my thought. The topic tended to be sensitive - and really, the only one who shared my opinions on it was Jay. We had to keep quiet about it.
“Well… anyway” I continued. “I should probably get going so I'm not running late. I really don't want to deal with the outcome of that.”
Orion nodded in agreement. “Well, in that case, I'll ta lk to you later.” | |
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